Falsely Accused
by Junebugsm
Summary: Callie was always blamed for everything, especially things she didn't do; so she wasn't surprised when she was blamed for selling the pills.
1. Chapter 1

**Callie was always blamed for everything, especially things she didn't do; so she wasn't surprised when she was blamed for selling the pills.**

(A different take on how Callie reacted to Stef and Lena questioning her about the pills. - A really short story based on the beginning of the show because I miss those stories.)

* * *

"We've been told that you uh, stole Jesus' pills and have been selling them at school. Is this true?" Stef asked once the three of them were seated at the dining table. accused

Callie should have known it was coming. It always came. Before she could even really catch her breath something always happened. She knew that Mariana was bad news right from the start - the girl hadn't even given her a chance before she decided that she didn't like her and now she was being blamed for something she didn't even entirely understand.

"Is this true?" Stef repeated when Callie remained silent for too long.

"No." Callie finally said, though she knew that they would never believe her - no one ever did.

"Are you sure about that?" Stef asked just like Callie knew she would. She was another person who seemed to just assume that Callie was bad news before even getting to know her.

"Uh-huh." Callie said with just a little bit of attitude. If she was going down then she was going to go with her head held high.

"Then why would the student say that you did?" Lena asked, giving her a chance to explain herself.

"Well I guess I'm just an easy target." Callie answered in an obvious tone.

Neither woman knew what to say because that was definitely a believable reason. Callie was the new girl. Callie was the girl fresh out of Juvie. Callie was the one with no one on her side. Callie was the best to blame.

"Alright." Stef said, wondering what to do. "Can you give us a minute please."

Callie couldn't get away fast enough. She was lucky that they'd at least asked her about it before just assuming it was her and shoving her straight out the door. She knew they didn't believe her and she knew eventually she would suffer the consequences but still, they were the first people to at least ask her about it before deciding she was to blame.

* * *

"What did you tell them?" Mariana asked when Callie told her what the confrontation was about.

"Well I didn't tell them that it was you, if that's what you're asking me." Callie said, knowing that Mariana didn't really care about anything else.

"Why not?" Mariana asked, wondering why the girl wouldn't clear her name the first chance she got.

"As if they'd believe me." Callie said and Mariana knew that she was right.

* * *

"What happened?" Jude asked when Callie finally made it back into the house.

"Nothing bud." Callie said, trying to make it seem like it was no big deal.

Jude looked at her for a moment. He wasn't stupid. He knew that Callie often took the fall for things she didn't do but he also knew that she often did things she shouldn't and wouldn't tell him.

"Did you sell them?" He finally asked, letting her know that he had heard them.

Callie sighed when she realized that she couldn't pretend in front of Jude about this.

"No." Callie answered honestly.

"Not even for the money?" Jude asked.

Callie looked hurt. She knew why Jude was asking. She'd stolen several times in the past - food, clothing and even money to buy them, medication a few times when one of them needed it and one, but only once, Callie stole someone else's homework because she hadn't had the time to complete it and if she didn't hand anything in then she'd really be in trouble.

But Callie would never do something like this and she really wished that Jude knew that. If they desperately needed the money she would have taken cash itself but right now they were both doing okay and she wondered if Jude could tell the difference between when they really needed it and when not.

"They're not going to believe you." Jude said. He believed Callie when she said she didn't but foster parents often didn't and they'd only been in this house two days so their chances were slim to none.

"I have nothing to hide Jude." Callie said with more confidence than she felt. "Even if they look into it, they won't find anything on me, so we're going to be fine."

" _If_ they look." Jude mumbled, knowing that the blame would lie with her regardless.

Callie sighed. Jude was right. They wouldn't look further into it because she was new and she was the first one to suspect. They'd never believe that their perfect angel couldn't possibly have little horns too. With no real evidence they'd just have to call Bill and request another placement and Callie had to find a way to fix things and only one thing came to mind - she'd suffer the consequences, but at least Jude would escape.

* * *

"I did it." Callie said as she entered the kitchen.

Stef and Lena were busy getting dinner together and talking quietly and missed hearing the girl come in. Both women turned in surprise at what she said.

"Did what?" Stef clarified, just to be sure they were all talking about the same thing.

"Sold the pills." Callie answered.

There was a pause as both women tried to figure out what to do.

"Why?" Lena finally asked. "Why would you do that?"

"For the money." Callie said with no emotion whatsoever.

"What did you need the money for?" Stef asked. She couldn't help but wonder if the girl was in some sort of debt or an addict of come kind.

"I didn't know we were going to be staying here for a while." Callie explained. "I thought that with it being two of us and after what I did the other night you'd send us away and the next home may not be as nice." She knew that they would have no reason to doubt her on that. Apart from the pills, the rest was completely true.

Stef struggled to swallow what was said to her. On the one hand Callie had a point - she knew the foster system was far from sufficient for homeless kids and Callie definitely had a good reason to get her hands on some money, regardless of the method. But on the other hand she was a cop and a mom and she couldn't quite fight the urge to correct the behavior.

"Look, I know I messed up." Callie said, giving them her plan before they could come up with one of their own. She couldn't risk Jude being dragged through it all. "You can call Bill and I'll go back to juvie. But Jude had nothing to do with it. You were going to foster me for a while so you can foster Jude instead, until I get out and Bill can find us another home together."

It wasn't a question; it was more a demand and both women could see it clearly. They knew it had to be reported. Callie was a temporary foster child and she'd been caught selling drugs at school. She was almost definitely going back to Juvie. The one thing the moms could do for her was keep Jude in their care until such time as more permanent arrangements could be made.

"I'll see what Bill says, but it could work." Lena said. She didn't want to give the girl false hope but she didn't see anything wrong with the plan either.

Satisfied, Callie turned back to the living room to begin gathering all her things. She'd leave Jude's stuff behind and a few things of her own for him to keep. The rest she dumped into her blue duffel, ready for what lay ahead.


	2. Chapter 2

"Callie, Bill is coming at eleven tomorrow morning." Lena said as the family sat down to dinner. Stef and Lena had continued to discuss things as they were making dinner and finally Lena hand made the call and talked to Bill who had willingly agreed to the plan - thankful that he didn't have to find another home for Jude.

Callie nodded but didn't say a word. Neither she nor Jude seemed to have much of an appetite and both moms noticed. What they didn't notice was that their own daughter didn't seem to have much of one either.

"How long?" Jude asked, looking down at his plate. He wanted to know how long his sister would be locked up for this time. It was a second offense so he knew they wouldn't go easy on her but he was just so angry that she hadn't even done it in the first place.

"We don't know." Stef said sympathetically. She felt bad for both kids but she couldn't just allow Callie to continue living there with no consequences. That wasn't the right message to any of the kids. "Bill will have to talk to the court about that."

"I'll be fine bud." Callie gave him a reassuring smile. "I can take care of myself. At least I won't be the new kid right." She tried to joke. After all, she'd been in there just three days ago. How much could have changed in three days.

* * *

The rest of dinner went by in awkward conversation. Everyone trying to ignore the pink elephant in the room. Jude and Callie talked quietly among themselves while the moms and the boys chatted politely about nothing in particular.

"Not hungry Miss. Thing?" Stef asked when she noticed that Mariana's place was mostly untouched.

Mariana shook her head as she pushed her plate away.

"Are you sick?" Stef asked with a frown as she leaned across the table to feel Mariana's forehead. "You're not warm."

"Um... queasy." Mariana answered honestly. There was nothing she wanted to do more than throw up. She couldn't believe that Callie had taken the blame for her and was going back to Juvie. She just wished she had enough guts to tell the truth.

 _'She'll be fine.'_ Mariana told herself. ' _It's like she said, she's been their before, she knows how to take care of herself. I wouldn't survive if I got sent away.'_

"Go lie down love." Stef said kindly as Lena grabbed a box of apple juice and a bottle of water and handed them to the girl.

"Stay hydrated please." Lena added as Mariana took them from her. "We'll come check on you in a bit."

Though Callie was angry with Mariana she watched the scene in amazement. She couldn't imagine living a life where people just trusted you with no question. The girl so easily got away with faking being sick and not once did anyone doubt her. There had been a time, back in her third foster home, where Callie had actually been sick and still her foster mother had accused her of trying to skip out of school. Callie couldn't have imagined why she'd choose to do that just to stay longer in the smelly, unclean house that she was forced to live in at the time.

As Callie watched Mariana go she saw the girl turn back to glance at her as well. A flash of guilt filled Marina's eyes but it quickly turned into determination as she continued up the stairs to safety. She had a 'get out of jail free' card this time and it was clear that she was going to use it.

* * *

"I'm proud of you for telling the truth." Stef said to Callie as she watched her get into her makeshift bed on the couch. A bed for Callie was due to arrive the next day but it looked like they would be sending it back. Only Jude would be moving in indefinitely.

Callie nodded as she swallowed a lump in her throat. She was angry but a part of her was sad too - this seemed to have been a really good place to land for a while and she'd managed to screw it up just by being her. If Callie believed in destiny at all she'd definitely mark herself as bad luck.

"Can I visit her?" Jude asked from the floor where a sleeping bag had been set up for him. He was nervous to ask but he felt like it was worth a try. He'd never tried the last time because he knew that his foster father wouldn't allow it. He'd probably tell him to just forget about his sister and move on.

"Sure." Stef smiled at him. "We'll see what we can do."

Jude wasn't sure whether she was just saying that to make him feel better or she really meant it but the fact that she hadn't just shut him down right off the bat gave him a good feeling.

"Sleep well." Stef said as she turned out the light. But the moment the words left her mouth she cursed herself - what was that supposed to mean? How could they sleep well when they knew that Callie was going back to Juvie the following morning.

As Stef, Lena and Jude thought about that Callie lay awake waiting for Jude's breathing to even out. Once he was fast asleep she was going to grab her bag and disappear. She couldn't go back to Juvie, especially not for something she didn't do. Her only option was to run away and leave Jude behind where he'd be taken care of.


	3. Chapter 3

"Are you really going to let Callie take the fall for the pills?" Jesus asked when he shook Mariana awake late that night after everyone else was already asleep.

He had been out of the house all day and only came home in time for dinner and when he overheard the conversation Jesus had to bite his tongue to keep from rescuing his new foster sister. He loved his twin more than anything and he'd do almost anything for her but he honestly believed she could be a real bitch sometimes.

"I never said she did it." Mariana said bitterly. The guilt was eating her up as well but she was just too afraid to tell the truth and as a result she was angry and short tempered. "She could have told the truth. She's the one who's lying."

"You're really going with that?" Jesus asked in surprise. He couldn't believe she was blaming Callie for any of this.

"Look, she's leaving soon anyways so what difference does it make?" Mariana asked, hoping that her brother would see it her way, though she knew that he wouldn't. He was always too nice.

"She's going to juvie, Mariana." Jesus reminded her. "Not on a weekend spa trip."

"Well, it's already done." Mariana said in a tone of finality, hoping that Jesus would just let it go and not make her feel even worse than she already felt.

"Then undo it." Jesus said in an equally expectant tone. He could see the dilemma in his sisters eyes and he felt a little bad for her. She'd never completely settled, even here where they were a hundred percent safe. He knew she was still always afraid of being rejected and he wished he could do something to make her feel as secure as he did even when they made mistakes. But what he couldn't do was watch his sister sit back and let someone else take the fall for her mistake. He sat down on the edge of her bed and laid a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Look, I know you're scared but they're not going to hurt you." Jesus reminded her. "They love you and they'll understand."

Mariana raised her eyebrows at him, letting him know that they wouldn't understand.

"I mean, they're not going to send you away or stop loving you." Jesus explained. "They'll get mad and you'll get in trouble but it'll be nothing compared to what Callie goes though and she had nothing to do with it."

"They'll never look at me the same again." Mariana said dejectedly.

"But will you be able to look at yourself the same if you let Callie go down?" Jesus asked rhetorically.

Mariana sighed as she realized what she had to do to make things right. Jesus was right - she'd never be able to look at herself in the mirror if she let this happen; and boy did she love looking in that mirror.

"Tomorrow?" Mariana asked hopefully. She wanted just one last night to bask in the love her moms had for her. Even if they didn't stop loving her and didn't hurt her or send her away; even if they did eventually forgive her; she knew that they'd never look at her quite the same.

"Okay." Jesus said, realizing it was probably too late to do anything about it now anyways.

Only neither of them realized that just as they were deciding this, Callie was running down the street and disappearing into the darkness.

* * *

The knock was almost so light that Stef wasn't entirely sure it was real. But her instinct was always to err on the side of caution and so she got out of bed and opened their bedroom door and sure enough found a small figure standing there.

Jude's face was filled with fear and it was clear that he was trying to hold his tears back.

"What's wrong sweetie?" Stef asked in concern. She never imagined the young boy to come to her for something, at least not while his sister was still here.

"She's gone." Jude whispered.

Stef sighed. She was right - Jude wouldn't come to her as long as his sister was around and he only did now because she'd run away.

* * *

"Are you sure she didn't say anything?" Stef asked again. She was sitting with Lena and Jude in the living room. They had gone thought the entire room looking for some sign of where Callie had gone but found nothing.

"She kissed me goodnight and when I woke up to pee she was gone." Jude explained again. He hadn't expected them to be too bothered by her disappearance but he was pleasantly surprised. Not only were they trying to do something about it but they seemed genuinely concerned.

"We'll find her okay." Lena tried to promise as she reached for the young boy's hand. "We'll get her back."

"I'm going to go look for her." Stef said, deciding that sitting around the house talking about it wasn't helping at all.

"I want to come too." Jude said, feel just a little bolder in this house than he usually would anywhere else.

"We'll all go." Lena said. She knew how Stef could get on a mission like this and someone needed to be there for Jude as well.

Stef nodded as she headed upstairs to wake Brandon and tell him what they were up to.

"We'll see if we can find her before Bill gets here." Stef told her son. "It may be a while so get yourself and the twins to school please."

"Sure mom." Brandon said as he glanced at the clock. It was only four and he had two more hours before he had to wake his siblings up. "I hope she's okay."

"Me too baby." Stef said, her worry and concern unmasked.

* * *

Stef, Lena and Jude had been driving around for two and a half hours already but hadn't found her anywhere. Jude had told them all the places he though she might be but she wasn't at any of them. He couldn't really remember how to get to any of the places but what he did remember proved to be futile.

He was getting more and more upset. Stef was getting more worried and Lena, though worried too, was trying to keep them both calm.

"What will happen to her?" Jude asked as the tears he'd been holding in for hours finally seeped though.

"I don't know honey." Stef said honestly. She was frustrated with Callie for just running like that. She was so scared of what would happen to her and she only hoped that someone would find her before something really bad happened.

"We'll tell the police she ran away and they'll look for her." Lena said. She knew it wasn't that simple but she wanted to reassure the boy in any way she could. "She can't be too far right?" She said more optimistically than she felt.

* * *

Brandon had woken up early and showered before heading downstairs to get some cereal and fruit for their breakfast but neither of his siblings were downstairs yet. They were both in Mariana's room when he got done with his shower but he hadn't bothered to find out what they were doing.

"Come on guys." Brandon called up the stairs. They only had ten minutes before they had to leave for school and he couldn't be late or else he wouldn't have time for a little practice before school started.

Jesus knew why his sister was taking so long. She was terrified of facing her moms and as a result she was dawdling.

"Let's just get this over with." Jesus said as she grabbed his sister's hand. "I'm here with you."

Mariana smiled gratefully as she finally made it out her bedroom door and down the stairs, surprised to find only Brandon at the kitchen table.

"Where're moms?" Mariana asked looking around for them.

"They went to look for Callie." Brandon said, stuffing a spoonful of wheat flakes into his mouth. "Apparently she ran away last night."

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Thanks to Brian1972 for her help and ideas.


	4. Chapter 4

"We should just file a report." Stef said for the third time as the three of them drove around the city looking for Callie.

They had already been to every place Jude could think of and then some but hadn't found her anywhere. They'd looked at the school, the beach, the mall, driven by some other possible hangouts but neither mom knew much about the girl and Jude didn't know where most of their past foster homes were or how to get there.

"We don't want her in any more trouble." Lena said, worried. She didn't want the girl to suffer any more than she already had and was about to. They had called Bill and postponed the meeting, giving him a very evasive excuse and had been out looking for the girl for over five hours now.

"It may be better than the alternative Lena." Stef whispered as she glanced in the rearview mirror at the boy who's face was glued to the window looking for his sister.

"Maybe she'll come back on her own." Lena said optimistically. "Jude's still here so she may come back for him."

"That's highly unlikely." Stef said. "She knew what was coming and she's gone for good."

"I feel so guilty." Lena said as she too realized that the girl was probably not coming back.

"Why?" Stef asked with a frown. "We were doing the right thing. What does it teach the other kids or even her for that matter if we let her get away with something like that?"

"I know." Lena agreed. "But if we hadn't said that then she'd still be at home." She wished things had turned out differently. She'd brought the girl home hoping to make a difference and she couldn't believe Callie had done something like this.

"You know that's not true." Stef said. "If she's been doing this a while then she knows she taking a risk."

"I wanted it to be different." Lena said. "I though if I gave her a chance it would help."

"I know love." Stef said, reaching across the console to take Lena's hand. "You always want to help. But sometimes it's just not that easy."

* * *

Through the day Mariana was getting more and more agitated. To make matters worse she was now sitting at lunch with Lexi and Kelsey, listening to Kelsey drone on about a new pair of shoes she bought to match the ridiculously expensive dress she bought last week.

"God Kelsey, can we talk about something other than you for a change?" Mariana snapped when Kelsey showed her yet another picture of the said shoes.

"Whow girl, what crawled up your ass?" Kelsey asked as she took a sip of her ice-cold water.

"Nothing." Mariana said as she dumped her uneaten sandwich back into her bag and pushed herself off the table. She wanted to get away before she completely snapped. She couldn't seem to get her mind off Callie and as much as she hoped her moms found her and brought her home safe she was also relieved that she was gone and along with her Mariana's secret.

The moment school let out Mariana practically ran all the way home and Jesus wasn't far behind. He wanted to be there to support his sister. He knew she was scared and though he knew her fears were unfounded, he still wanted to be there for her.

"Is she here?" Mariana asked the second she walked through the door.

The moms had only gotten home half an hour earlier and had finally called Bill to let him know what had happened and he had promised to call any possible past foster homes to see if Callie had shown up. Stef had also called the station and find a APB and all cops were on the look-out for the missing teen.

"We didn't find her." Stef said, rather surprised at Mariana's interest. The girl had shown absolutely no interest in their guest from the moment she walked in the door. "But they're still looking." She added for the benefit of Jude who was sitting in the living room along with them.

"Well how long will they look for?" Mariana asked and the concern look on her face was mistaken by her moms'.

"Until they find her." Stef said, though she knew that wasn't true. Callie had run away which meant that eventually, if they didn't find her they would stop looking. Unfortunately the fact that she was in the foster system meant that she'd be forgotten fairly quickly and Stef was determined not to let that happen.

"Well, what are the chances?" Mariana asked.

Stef sighed as she glanced at Jude - the chances were slim, simply because no one knew where to look. She'd only been in this house for a day so no one really knew much about her. Her previous foster homes hadn't worked out otherwise they'd still be there so they wouldn't be too helpful, the little that Jude remembered had proved fruitless as well and no one knew if Callie had any friends that she might go to for help. So, unless Callie got caught somewhere, they were likely not going to find her any time soon.

"We'll keep looking." She said as an answer, just so that Jude wouldn't become too afraid. He'd surprisingly taken very well to the two moms in the absence of his sister and had stuck by one of them all day.

* * *

"Why didn't you tell them?" Jesus asked once Mariana had gone up to her room. He'd listened to his sister ask question after question about finding Callie, thinking that she'd confess any minute but when she didn't Jesus was more disappointed in her than ever.

"What's the point?" Mariana asked, looking up at her brother though the mirror as she brushed her hair. "Callie's gone and mom basically said that they weren't going to find her. This way I don't have to get into trouble."

"I don't believe this." Jesus said in disgust. "You're just going to let her go down like that. I thought you were better than that Mariana." He said, disappointment clear in his tone.

"Look, confessing isn't going to bring her back is it?" Mariana defended. "She's gone and at least this way her disappearance won't be for nothing."

"Yeah. You keep telling yourself that." Jesus said as he left the room, slamming the door behind him.

Jesus had half a mind of going and telling his moms the truth himself but a very small part of his still wanted to protect his sister no matter how big of a bitch she was. He decided to give her just a little more time to change her mind or for them to find Callie and bring her back.

* * *

"Sweetheart, you skipped lunch, you can't skip dinner too." Lena said to Jude as she watched the boy sit at the table with his hands on his lap.

Jude looked like he wanted to do nothing more than curl up in a ball and cry but Lena had insisted he join them at the table for dinner, hoping that it would get him to eat. So far all they'd managed to get into him all day was a few french fries and a box of orange juice.

"I'm not hungry." Jude said. There was no defiance in his voice. In fact there was no emotion at all. He was completely blank and that's what worried Stef and Lena the most.

"You can't not be hungry honey." Lena tried gently. "You haven't eaten anything all day. Just try a few bites." She encouraged as she pushed his plate a little closer to him.

But Jude remained in the same statue-like position he'd been in for the last twenty minutes.

"Finish your dinner Jude." Stef said in a no-nonsense manner, hoping that a little authority would get the boy to do what needed to be done.

But Jude just looked up at her with a look that made her feel so guilty. He wasn't trying to be defiant, he was just scared and all alone with virtually a bunch of strangers and the last thing he needed was to be afraid of them.

"I sorry sweetheart, I just need you to eat something please." Stef said in a much more gentle tone. "I know you're scared and worried but making yourself sick isn't going to help Callie in anyway. I'm sure she'd want you to take care of yourself.

But that did nothing to help Jude because he was scared and worried about Callie but he was also angry with her because she'd never left him before. She'd gone to Juvie but that hadn't been her choice and he'd known where she was. This time she'd chosen to leave him and he couldn't understand why. He trusted Stef and Lena completely and he knew that Callie obviously did too otherwise she would never have left him alone with them but what he couldn't understand was why she hadn't taken him with her regardless of how nice they were.

"How about something else?" Lena suggested, hoping that if they let him choose he'll eat something he actually likes. "We have mac and cheese." She offered, knowing that most kids loved it.

"No thanks." Jude said politely though he didn't look up.

Lena's shoulders dropped in defeat. She wished there was something she could do to help him. He could skip a meal or two but after that what were they to do?

"We'll find her." Stef assured the boy when she saw how unsuccessful Lena felt. "We won't stop looking till we find her."

"What if you don't?" Jude asked. He knew that some kids never came back. They just seemed to disappear off the face of the earth as though they never existed in the first place.

No one had an answer and as a result Stef just rubbed a hand up and down his back a few times before pushing his place a little closer, encouraging him to eat.

Thought this the twins were watching intently. Jesus' gaze kept going back and forth between Jude and his sister but Mariana never once took her eyes of the twelve year old. If she'd looked up just once she would have seen the dirty, disappointed look that her twin kept giving her.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So I don't usually do this but since everyone seems to love this story (thank you BTW) I thought I'd let you decide -

As you all know I don't have too much time to write and sometimes end up going a few weeks before I post anything (which I never did before). This was supposed to be a short story about how Callie reacts but since there has been such a lot of interest I thought I might make it a full length story (i.e more than just a dozen chapters). The only thing is it would take quite a while.

Along with this I'll be working on HISTORY and a few other one-shots, requests and new stories that I think up. I don't usually have two long stories going at the same time but if that's what you guys prefer just let me know and I'll extend this as and when I can.

Right now I'm so overloaded with ideas and just not enough time to write it all so I jot down points as I think of them and work on it as and when I can.

Let me know - a quick story that will finish by the end of next week or a full length that may go on for months?

Thanks again for all the amazing reviews. I never imagined so much interest in this. It had been rolling around in my head from almost the beginning and I just decided to write it thinking it would finish quite fast but clearly not.

Happy Reading.

Love Junebug.


	5. Chapter 5

"What do you think she's doing?" Lena asked, breaking the silence that both women had settled into.

They were lying in bed, reading, though both knew that neither was actually paying attention to anything. Their minds were on the girl that was missing and the boy in the room down the hall that was probably lying awake as well.

"I don't know, but honestly, I'm too afraid to think about it." Stef admitted, not looking away from her book. She'd been called into so many case of missing girls, girls that have overdosed, been raped, murdered, and a whole list of other horrors and Stef could now see Callie's face on every girl she'd encountered.

"I can't believe she thought this was better than Juvie." Lena wondered aloud. Neither woman knew the girl that well but neither wanted this for her, no matter what she'd done. "How will she survive all alone?"

"Unfortunately the quickest way for her to survive is to sell herself." Stef said, her voice laced with regret.

"Oh God, please no." Lena shook her head, refusing to even think about it.

"One hour can get you a few hundred bucks if you're lucky." Stef said factually.

"Lucky?" Lena questioned. Nothing about prostitution made her think of _lucky_.

Stef looked over at her. "You know what I mean." She said before looking back at nothing in particular.

"Well I hope she finds some other way." Lena said hopefully. "Maybe she'll get a job or something."

"Who's going to give a teenager a job Lena?" Stef asked. She hated to burst Lena's fantasy but pretending and hoping that Callie was fine wasn't going to do much good.

They were silent for a few more minutes as both women imagined the young brunette and her whereabouts.

"I wish we'd just let the whole stupid thing go." Lena said regretfully. "So she stole something for a little cash."

Once again Stef turned towards Lena giving her a 'ya right' look. "Pills." Stef said. "She stole and sold pills." She reminded her wife.

"I know that but she didn't deserve this." Lena said as Stef turned away again. "She's a good kid."

"She is." Stef agreed, thinking of the girl she first met at her kitchen table and how different she was from the one at Tijuana.

"Something's not right." Stef said. Her gut told her that there was more. She knew that the Callie that she saw in Tijuana was the real Callie and this defensive, defiant girl was only doing what she'd learnt to do in order to protect herself.

"What do you mean?" Lena asked. She too had learnt to trust Stef's instincts. The cop had seldom let her down.

"I'm not sure." Stef admitted as she tried to rack her brain for what she was missing. "I just wonder why she denied it first and then suddenly came and confessed." Stef turned towards Lena one more time.

"Maybe she's got more of a conscience than we thought." Lena answered. "Her reason for selling them makes sense so maybe she's not being a _bad kid_." She labeled in disgust.

"But still, why not try to get away with it?" Stef wondered aloud. "We don't know her well enough to just pin it on her."

"But we don't know her well enough to trust her either." Lena pointed out, knowing that kids often made rash decisions when they felt cornered and living with a cop was definitely a reason to feel cornered.

* * *

"Can I come with you?" Jude asked, looking up from his untouched pancake.

Stef had just informed them all that she'd be looking for Callie and that people had been looking for her all night. Jude hadn't slept much and Stef and Lena had both checked on him quite a few times though the night.

"You have school bud." Stef reminded him gently. She knew that taking him along wouldn't help much. They'd already checked all the places he thought she might be and having to keep an eye on him would have slowed her down considerably.

"Sorry." Jude said, hoping that he wasn't pushing too hard. They were nice to him and he definitely didn't want to rock the boat, especially while Callie was gone.

"Don't be." Stef said gently as she stroked his back. "I know you're worried, we all are, but let us do our job. We won't give up until we find her."

Jude nodded slightly as turned back to his pancake and just stared at it.

"You gotta eat it bud." Lena said. "You skipped dinner, I know you must be hungry."

Jude looked up at her with sad brown eyes and Lena's heart practically broke.

"Going hungry isn't going to help Callie." Lena pointed out trying not to sound mean. She just needed to get the boy to eat.

"Maybe she's hungry." Jude mumbled, before a tear slowly made it's way down his cheek. His sister had always been the one constant in his life, no matter how horrible it got, but now he suddenly felt like he was drifting in the middle of the ocean and he just knew that a storm was brewing.

"She's a smart girl Jude." Stef said encouragingly. "She knows how to take care of herself."

But Jude didn't believe her. Yes, Callie knew how to take care of herself but she had never done something like this before and Jude knew that Callie had to be really desperate to make such a rash decision.

* * *

"I'm so ashamed to call you my sister." Jesus said as he followed Mariana down one of the school hallways.

"Shut up Jesus." Mariana snapped before he could really even finish his sentence.

"Are you really going to just let this go on?" He asked in disbelief.

Mariana didn't answer as she continued towards her science class.

"Man you're really earning a one-way ticket to hell." Jesus shook his head in disappointment.

"Could you just shut up." Mariana snapped again, annoyed at her brother. She was feeling guilty enough as it is and she didn't need Jesus to make her feel worse. "Just mind your own business for once."

"Hey." Lena called when she heard them. "What are you two arguing about?"

Both teens turned to find Lena walking towards her office, her arm gently resting on a very pale, weak looking Jude.


	6. Chapter 6

"What happened?" Mariana asked, the worry clear in her voice.

"Jude got a little lightheaded." Lena said calmly. There was no need to get everyone worked up though she herself was very worried about Jude who hadn't eaten a thing at breakfast and she guessed lunch as well.

"Is he okay?" Mariana asked Lena though she was looking at Jude.

"He'll be fine." Lena assured. "He just needs a snack." She said, hoping it would be clear to the boy that he had to eat. She wasn't about to let him skip another meal.

"I bet you're really worried about Callie huh?" Jesus asked receiving a glare from Lena. The last thing they needed was for him to get even more worked up over Callie. But Jesus had another agenda and he was determined to get his sister to see just how much harm she was doing.

"I'm sure she's fine Jude." Mariana said, hoping to sound more encouraging than she felt. "She knows how to take care of herself right?" She smiled nervously.

But Jude didn't even attempt to smile back. For one thing he was too worried about his sister regardless of how well she could look after herself and second, he felt much too weak.

"We're just going to grab a snack and if Jude isn't feeling better after that I'm going to take him home." Lena informed her twins. "You guys may have to walk home today, tell B too."

Both Mariana and Jesus nodded as they watched Lena lead Jude to her office.

"Feel better Jude." Jesus said right before they disappeared.

Mariana turned to her brother. "Look, I know yo..."

But before she could even get a sentence out, Jesus was walking away and as Mariana watched him she couldn't help but feel entirely alone.

* * *

"Honey, you have to eat." Lena said as she attempted to hand Jude a tub of yogurt for the third time. "You're gonna make yourself sick." She tried to reason.

"I'm not hungry." Jude said in a small voice. "I promise, I feel so sick."

"I know." Lena sighed. She understood that Jude was sick with worry but she was running out of options.

"Can we please call Stef?" Jude asked pleadingly. He needed to know what was happening and Stef promised they were doing whatever they could to find her.

"Okay." Lena agreed. "But after that you need to eat this, deal?" She asked, once again pointing to the tub of yogurt.

"Fine." Jude sighed. He knew they meant well but he just had no appetite.

"You know they may not have found her." Lena pointed out as she pulled out her phone to call her wife. She wanted Jude to be aware of what was most likely and she didn't want to build his hopes up just to have them crushed.

"I know." Jude answered. "I just want to know if they found anything."

"Alright." Lena said satisfied as she waited to Stef to answer.

"Hey love." Stef greeted.

"Hey Stef." Lena said in a tone that let Stef know that this call had a purpose.

"How's Jude." Stef asked, figuring that's what they were calling about.

"He wants to talk to you." Lena said. "He just wanted to check in." She added, letting Stef know that he was prepared for the news that she hadn't been found yet."

"Okay love." Stef said, thinking what exactly she should tell the boy.

Lena handed the phone to Jude who took it and without any sort of greeting he began his questions.

"Did they find anything?" He asked eagerly.

"Not yet bud." Stef said. "But we did get a list of your previous homes and are checking them all right now." She added.

"She won't go there." Jude said. "She'd never go back."

"We're checking everything Jude." Stef said. On the one hand they wanted to be thorough but at the same time she could understand Jude's frustration at them checking places she wasn't going to be.

"Did you check our house?" He asked. Hoping that they hadn't and there was still a chance that she could be there.

"We did." Stef answered. "She wasn't there and no one had seen her."

Jude released a breath dejectedly as he racked his brain for anything he could tell them. Even the smallest memory could be what they needed to find her. But he was drawing blanks and he was constantly annoyed with himself for being so clueless.

"We're not giving up bud." Stef said encouragingly. "We're still looking and I promise I won't give up."

She had said 'we' the first time but the promise to continue was on her. She couldn't say what the department would do after a while, especially since Callie had run of her own accord but she was certain that she'd keep looking until the girl was found.

* * *

Lena finally took Jude home because she knew the boy needed to rest and he wasn't going to learn anything anyways until Callie was found. It had been two days and they seemed to be no closer to finding her and Lena wondered if they ever would.

"Jude honey, you need to eat something okay." Lena said as she led them into the house. "I'll make you whatever you want but you can't go on like this." She looked at the boy who looked so defeated and small. "Please." She added, hoping to play on his sensitive side. She'd do just about anything right now if it meant he'd have a proper meal.

"Okay." Jude finally said in a small voice though he didn't give any requests. He'd eat whatever she gave him just because he had to.

"How about a veggie sandwich?" Lena suggested. "Tomato, Potato, Peppers and Onions. And cheese of course." She tried to make it sound enticing but she knew it was having no effect whatsoever.

Jude nodded robotically as he sat at the table waiting for his meal.

"It's going to be okay Jude." Lena wrapped an arm around him, giving him a squeeze before heading off to make their snack.

* * *

At dinner that evening neither mom forced Jude to eat. He'd finished his sandwich, another tub of yogurt and a couple of bananas. Lena had suddenly realized just how hungry he must have been and hated that he was worried enough to suppress it.

"We've sent out notices in the tristate area so they'll be on the look out for her too." Stef said. "Just incase she's left California."

"You think she went that far?" Brandon asked.

"We have no idea." Stef answered honestly. "We just need to do whatever we can to get her back." She glanced at Jude, hoping he understood just how invested she was in this search. She wanted him to know that she wasn't giving up.

"I just want her back." Jude said as tears he'd been holding in for days finally poured out. "I can't believe she did this. She's never left me and gone before."

Three sets of eyes were on the boy as each one tried hard to find a way to console him. One set was on Mariana and her's were down on the table. She couldn't bare to see Jude's face any longer. She knew she had to do something, no matter what the consequences. Anything was better than this.

"It was me." She finally said. Her voice was soft but clear for she didn't want to have to do this twice. "I sold Kelsey the pills, not Callie." She didn't look up but she could feel all five sets of eyes on her and she wished more than anything that she could just disappear.


	7. Chapter 7

As the entire table stared at Mariana, trying to process what she'd said, Jesus slowly slipped his hand into her's under the table and gave it a supporting squeeze. He was proud of her for telling the truth and he wanted her to know that he was there for her no matter what anyone else thought.

And that squeeze gave finally Mariana the courage she needed to look up at the faces around her and she could read each one clearly. Jesus was looking sympathetically at her, Stef was positively fuming just as Mariana expected her to be and Brandon and Lena both had shocked expressions, trying to figure out why she would do something like that. Jude was blank. Mariana's gaze moved back to Stef. She knew that she would be the one to speak up first, and speak the loudest. She would be angry and she would make it clear to Mariana just how upset she was. Lena would be more gentle in her approach, she'd try to find out why Mariana would have done such a thing. But in the end they would both look at her with equally disappointing looks and that's what Mariana couldn't bare.

Mariana braced herself to what Stef was about to say but the voice she heard wasn't Stef's. Surprisingly to everyone the voice came from Jude.

"Why?" Jude asked with a frown on his face. "Why would you do that?" He questioned, his own anger building up rapidly. "You don't even know her, you never even gave her a chance." He couldn't believe that someone who had been in the system herself would treat Callie like that. He knew that Callie never hurt anyone and tried to help whoever she could and he was so angry that someone would use her like this. "What has she ever done to you?" He was practically yelling now as he stood up from his stool to lean over the table.

Mariana instinctively leaned away from him even though the table was between them. She never imagined the small boy to become so fierce and really she couldn't blame him. This was his sister they were talking about - the only person he had in his life and Mariana had chased her away.

"Was it because she had to share a stupid room with you?" Jude continued angrily. "You think she _wants_ to share a room with you?" He asked. "You think she wanted any of this?"

Slowly his reserve was fading and once again the tears began. He was still staring at Mariana, his ridged posture never wavering until Stef placed a gentle but firm hand on his back. He turned to face the only people who'd ever seemed to care about them.

"She's not a bad person." He said almost pleadingly, begging them to believe him. "She's never hurt anyone."

"We'll find her Jude." Stef repeated the same sentence she'd been promising for the last two days. She was more determined now than ever to find the girl and let her know that they knew the truth. She hated to think where she was and what she was doing and she vowed to herself that she wouldn't give up until she found her and they'd keep Jude with them until then.

* * *

"Why?" Lena asked her daughter.

The entire family had left their dinner and moved to the living room. The three boys were also present because Mariana seemed to need Jesus desperately, neither mom had the heart to tell Jude he couldn't be there and Brandon would have just eavesdropped anyway.

"Why would you do that?" Lena asked again. "And why blame Callie?"

"I didn't plan that." Mariana said, answering the last part. "Kelsey blamed her."

"Then why didn't you tell us the truth then?" Lena questioned.

Stef, surprisingly was silent, letting Lena do the talking for now. Her mind was split between trying to stay calm and wondering how to find their missing foster daughter. Suddenly the _foster_ part of it held no meaning and Stef found herself worrying as though it were one of her own kids out on the streets fending for herself.

"I was scared." Mariana admitted. "I didn't want you to be disappointed in me."

"Well let me tell you we are much more disappointed in you now that we would have been had you just told us the truth." Lena said clearly. She didn't want the girl to think that she'd made a sad face and shed some tears and all would be forgiven. "What you did was mean and unfriendly and Callie didn't deserve that."

Mariana looked away. She knew they'd never understand but she'd needed that money. It was her only ticket to her mom - her _real_ mom - and she'd taken it. Callie was a nobody to her so of course she'd pick Ana over her.

"Will she still go to Juvie?" Jude piped up from where he was sitting?"

"No." Stef answered robotically, her mind still focused on Callie.

"What about for running away?" Lena asked, momentarily putting Mariana aside.

"I'll explain what happened and get her cleared." Stef said, forming a plan in her mind.

"Will that work?" Lena asked.

"I hope so." Stef answered, admitting that it wasn't a foolproof plan.

"We can help you look." Brandon said, turning to Jesus for confirmation. "We could drive around with a picture of her and ask around."

"Can I go too?" Jude asked hopefully. He wanted to do something besides sit and wait for someone else to find her.

"I'll keep him with me." Brandon promised before either mom could even agree to the plan.

"Let me just call the station and let them know what's happening." Stef said, needing a more concrete plan than three children looking for a needle in a haystack. "And let me talk to Bill." She added, needing the social worker to know that she was innocent despite her disappearance.

"If she didn't do it, why would she run?" Lena asked, trying to figure out what exactly had happened.

"She was going to Juvie." Stef answered.

"But why did she own up to it if she hadn't done it?" Lena was confused. Callie had first denied it and then come to them herself and changed her story.

"For me." Jude answered softly. "She did it for me."

Once again all eyes were on him waiting for him to explain.

"She left so that I could stay." He said, knowing that there wasn't anything his sister wouldn't do for him.

Once again Stef felt herself longing to hold the girl that seemed to think that her existence was solely to protect her brother. How could a sixteen year old believe that she was so discardable. One thing she did feel relieved about was that Callie clearly trusted them or else she never would have left Jude alone in their care. They may have failed her by jumping to conclusions but they had obviously done something right as well and Stef just hoped that that was enough.


	8. Chapter 8

Four more days had gone by and there was still no sign of Callie. They had checked every possible place - the homeless shelters, hospitals, charities, unemployment agencies, churches, beaches, hangouts, as well as person places like former homes, places Jude and Callie had been together but still no one seemed to have seen her.

The police had been informed that if Callie was found she was not to be arrested and Bill had promised to do what he could to keep Callie from Juvie for running away. Their only fear was that she had left the state - that was a rule with very few loopholes and he wasn't sure if he could rescue her from that.

The three boys spent hours after school looking for Callie, mostly to satisfy Jude's desperate need to do _something_. Stef worked almost all day with the police, handing over her other duties to anyone who would help out. Lena stayed home with Mariana and tried over and over again to understand why Mariana would do something like that and what she did with the money she'd gotten but Mariana refused to give her those answers. She couldn't even imagine the looks they'd give her if they found out of Ana.

"Go home Stef." Mike said one afternoon when Stef had been working for over twenty four hours. "You've done everything you can, you need a break."

"I promised Jude I'd find her." Stef said, not looking up from her computer screen as she scrolled through lists of possible places a missing girl could be.

"We're all looking Stef." Mike reminded her. "Besides, it won't do him any good if you crash."

Stef finally looked up at him, thinking back to when Lena had said the same thing to Jude about not eating.

"Fine." Stef huffed, "but if you hear anything I want to know." She instructed, knowing that Mike wouldn't let her down. "I want to be the first one there if they get her."

"I'll drive you myself." Mike promised as Stef grabbed her stuff and left.

* * *

"How long before they give up?" Lena asked Stef late that night. "They finally gotten all the kids to bed and reminded Jude to join them if he had trouble sleeping.

"I don't know." Stef answered honestly. "She's a minor so they won't give up too easily. But on the other hand she's a foster kid so there aren't too many people to push for her and she ran away on her own so that's another reason they might lose interest."

"We'll push." Lena said in a promising tone. "We owe it to her."

"I just hope that by trying to avoid Juvie she doesn't end up with an even longer sentence." Stef said, thinking of all the trouble the girl can get into.

"Can't we get her excused or something?" Lena asked. "I mean she was falsely accused so it's not fair for her to be punished."

"Running away, breaking her parole and whatever else she does illegally will be on her." Stef answered. "No court will pardon that."

"This is such a mess." Lena mumbled, more to herself than to Stef as she tried to think of anything that would help. "I can't believe Mariana did something like this." She added as she turned to Stef. "I am so disappointed in her."

"Disappointment doesn't begin to cover it." Stef said. "She really screwed Callie over and Jude was right, Callie hadn't done anything do deserve this. And what the hell does Mariana need with all that money anyways?" Stef asked. "She better tell us the whole story soon or else she's really in for trouble."

"Let's just give her a chance to explain okay." Lena said, hoping that the girl had done it for more than just selfish reasons.

"Why do you think I've been avoiding her?" Stef asked. "I just can't get over how angry I am. Besides, finding Callie is my first priority right now."

"I'll try talking to Mariana again tomorrow, see if she says anything." Lena said. "I was angry too and she looked so scared I just don't know what to do."

"Well one thing's for certain, she is never going to do something like this ever again." Stef said with determination. "Just because she got lucky and found a family doesn't mean she has the right to treat people like that."

"She knows that." Lena said. "You can see how guilty she feels."

"Guilt doesn't help Callie now does it?" Stef asked rhetorically. "Mariana definitely needs a consequence for her actions."

"I agree and I've been thinking about..." Lena began but was interrupted by Stef's cellphone.

"Mike?" Stef said as she answered the called.

"Stef, they found a girl." Mike began.

"Is it Callie?" Stef asked, hoping that Mike would say yes.

"We don't know." Mike answered. "She's trapped under a truck. Apparently she was on a bike with a boy and they were racing another biker and came under the tires of an eighteen wheeler. They are trying to reach her now but she's unconscious and they don't know how bad she is."

Stef's heart stopped and she felt her eyes well with tears. This couldn't be happening. She felt a strong maternal need to hold the child that wasn't even her own. She just hoped that she would get the chance. She couldn't even imagine what she was going to tell Jude.

"She's still alive though." Mike continued, hoping it would give Stef some hope. "They're going to do everything they can."

"Where are you?" Stef asked with determination. "I'm coming down there."


	9. Chapter 9

"Mom." Mariana said, just as Stef was sticking her feet into her shoes.

"What?" Stef snapped, desperate to get to the site of the accident.

"Nothing." Mariana said as she began to walk back to her own room. She just couldn't bare to be yelled at right now and even though she wanted and needed just a little bit of comfort she knew she couldn't face the yelling.

"I'm sorry love." Stef said, softening immediately. One thing she was determined of was never to let her children feel like they were unapproachable. "Come in, what's wrong?"

"I couldn't sleep." Mariana admitted as she sat down an arm's length away from her mom.

"Are you feeling sick?" Lena asked with concern as she exited the bathroom to join them on the bed.

"No, just worried." Mariana admitted in a small voice, avoiding eye contact with either of them.

Stef and Lena shared a look - the time for the conversation had come and unfortunately it couldn't have been at a worse time.

"Why?" Stef asked the single word though it held volumes of questions.

"I didn't think she was going to be here that long anyways and I didn't expect any of this." Mariana admitted shamefully. "She was new and it was easy once Kelsey blamed her and I thought in a few days she'll be gone anyway and it wouldn't matter anymore."

"So you threw her under the bus." Stef stated sadly, still disappointed in her daughter's behavior.

Mariana didn't respond. It was true and while she never intended for things to get this out of hand, she'd still let it go this far.

"Why didn't you just tell us the truth?" Lena asked, sitting down beside Mariana and taking her hand. She wanted the girl to know that they were still there no matter what.

"I was scared to tell you the truth." Mariana admitted. She looked so much like the frightened girl that had come to live with them eight years ago. "I just didn't want you to hate me."

"You can't use that Mariana." Stef said. "You know damn well that you could have come to us with anything."

"This was different." Mariana mumbled. Her moms were always there and always supportive but how could she expect that from them when she wanted a relationship with another mom.

"Why?" Stef questioned. She needed to understand because so far Mariana hadn't displayed any behavior they'd taught her.

"You wouldn't understand." Mariana answered. "She knew they'd be hurt and maybe even angry but she didn't know how to prove to them that just because she wanted a relationship with Ana it didn't mean that she didn't want them too.

"Where's the money you got from the pills?" Stef asked.

Mariana looked up, startled by the question. She hadn't expected it and as a result she didn't have a good enough excuse immediately. As she studied Stef's gaze she knew it would be pointless to lie - the cop sometimes had X-ray vision into everyone's minds.

"I gave it to someone." Mariana answered, preparing herself for the whole story to slowly unravel.

"Why?" Both Stef and Lena asked in unison. They expected Marina to have kept the money or bought shoes and makeup with it.

Mariana remained silent. She was too afraid to answer because so far she was in trouble but still on their good side. Admitting her involvement with her birth mom could potentially change that.

"Mariana." Stef coaxed, rather impatiently. She needed to know what happened and then she needed to get to who she hoped was Callie.

"Ana." Marina answered so softly it was barely audible. "I gave it to Ana."

"Who?" Stef asked in confusion, trying to think of all of Mariana's friends.

At the same time Lena asked. "Your birth mom?" She'd recently been in contact with Bill about her and the name clicked immediately.

"When?" Stef asked in surprise, suddenly completely engrossed in the conversation. The drug addicted woman had been in contact with her daughter and taken money off of her and Stef just had to make sure that her daughter hadn't come to any harm. She trusted Mike to look out for Callie in the mean time.

Mariana didn't answer once again. The details seemed quite a blur to her now after almost two weeks.

"When did you meet her Mariana." Stef asked again.

"And how?" Lena asked, wondering how the girl had gotten in touch.

"We met online" Mariana answered. "I looked her up and she met me on the beach the night that Callie and Brandon went to get Jude."

"That was the night of Brandon's concert." Stef stated, wondering how her daughter had planned on being in two places at once.

Mariana nodded. Stef obviously didn't remember but Mariana had tried to get out of it by faking a stomach ache.

"But why did you give her the money?" Lena asked.

"She needed it for rehab." Mariana answered.

"So you had already planned to meet her?" Stef clarified.

Mariana nodded but didn't look up. "I just wanted to know her." She answered with raw honesty. "But all she wanted was an ATM machine."

Both mom's could hear the pain in her voice and both softened immensely. Yes, their daughter had made mistakes and hurt someone in the process but she was hurting too and suddenly they could both understand why she suddenly felt like she couldn't come to them - this dug up her past and that included the distrusting, self preserving Mariana.

"Why not come to us?" Stef asked in a much softer, gentle tone.

Mariana shrugged. She had no answer other than the feeling that they wouldn't understand. She herself didn't understand it fully. She had two amazing moms who would give up their lives for her and still she desperately wanted to connect with someone who'd basically thrown her away more times than she could count.

"Love, nothing will _ever_ change the way we feel about you." Stef said clearly. "Nothing _ever._ " She confirmed.

"Wanting to know your mom is okay." Lena added. "We understand that - she's your mom." She said in an obvious tone.

"What's not okay is going behind our backs." Stef continued. "We were arranging it for a reason. You could have put yourself in danger and we might never have known where to find you."

Mariana looked scared at the thought and the moms could tell that this part of the conversation could wait for another time when Mariana herself had settled down a bit.

"It's also not okay to hurt someone else just because you're hurting." Lena added. "Callie didn't deserve any of this even if she was only going to be here for a short time and everything would be forgotten."

"I know." Mariana answered regretfully. "I'm sorry about that. I was too scared at first and as time went by it just got so much harder."

They were all silent for a few moments as Mariana relived the last few days. "When Jude became so scared I knew I'd gone too far. I guess I never really thought of Callie as a person until then."

"Not everyone got lucky like you." Stef said. "You got a home and you got one pretty young but you know what the foster system is like and you need to be more understanding."

"I know." Mariana answered. "And I know you're disappointed in me and I'm sorry for what I did and for taking so long to come to you when it got so out of hand. I wish I could take it back."

"We will talk about consequences when I get back." Stef said, resuming tying her shoelaces.

Mariana looked up in confusion. It was almost midnight, where was her mother going.

"There's been an accident and I need to go help." Stef answered, not wanted to get the kids' hopes up if it wasn't Callie.

Mariana nodded as she moved away a bit to give Stef some room.

But Stef pulled her back for one more hug. "I love you." She said firmly. "Don't you forget it."

Mariana smiled softly as Stef let her go, grabbed her badge and gun and got ready to leave.

"You can snuggle with mama tonight." Stef pointed out with a wink, hoping that Mariana's fears would disappear at the invitation of sleeping in their room.

Mariana's smile grew as Lena pulled her in for another hug. Stef smiled to herself and headed out the door to the site of the accident and who she hoped was Callie.


	10. Chapter 10

"FUCK!" Stef cursed out loud as she turned the car around and headed back towards San Diego. She was so close; so damn close, but now she had to go back without a chance to check if the girl under the car was Callie.

She'd driven for over half an hour to get to the site, hoping that she'd be able to tell if the girl was Callie or not just by looking at her. But she hadn't even reached before she was called back to work. A sleazy bar down town was often found as a trading site for drugs but the cops had never been able to prove it and now they finally seemed to have some physical evidence to shut it down. Stef and her three other female coworkers were also called in to help raid the place because most of the servers were girls and usually preferred talking to female cops.

Stef called Mike and told him what was happening and made him promise several times not to let the girl out of his sight. She needed to know if it was Callie or not and if it was then she was definitely not going to lose her again.

After that she called Lena and explained the situation to her as well. Lena too hated having to wait for an answer but she couldn't help but think of the young girls that Stef was going to talk to. It was always easier for a female officer to talk to young girls - they trusted them more and as a result were more willing to talk.

"The kids are all in bed." Lena told Stef, keeping her company on the ride back.

"Jude?" Stef asked of the boy that seemed to be no more than a shell lately.

"He's okay." Lena answered. "I didn't tell him where you were going because I wasn't sure what to tell him. If it is her and she's seriously hurt or worse then we need to know for certain before we tell him and if it's not then I don't want to get his hopes up."

"Good thinking love." Stef said. "What about Mariana." She asked.

"She's the same." Lena answered, looking down at the sleeping girl beside her. "Swinging between guilt and relief."

"Has she said anything else about Ana?" Stef asked curiously, wondering to what extent her daughter's relationship was.

"No." Lena answered and by the tone of her voice Stef knew that she'd tried to get some more details. "We'll talk to her again when you get back after going to Callie."

" _If_ it's Callie." Stef voiced the thought they both had.

"I'm not even sure if I want it to be her." Lena answered honestly. She didn't want the girl to be Callie and then find out she was dying.

"Mike says the paramedics think she has a chance if they can just get her out of there." Stef said, understanding Lena's point. "They think it's mostly just her legs that are trapped and the pain is probably what's made her unconscious but they aren't ruling out a head injury yet.

"God this is a nightmare." Lena whispered as she shook her head in the darkness of her bedroom.

"Hang in there love, I'll be home as soon as I can." Stef assured, knowing that Lena liked it when her whole family, that now included the two Jacob siblings, was safe and sound in their own beds.

* * *

Before heading to bed Lena went around the house checking on her children one more time. She always did this whenever Stef was at work at night - it gave her a sense of peace.

She first headed to Jesus' room to check on the two boys and found Jesus sprawled across his bed on his stomach, his cover tossed to one side and one arm dangling off the bed. Jude was curled in a ball, clutching the pillow that Callie had used for the first few nights she was with them. Lena then headed to Brandon's room and found him under his sheets, his cellphone lying next to him on the pillow. Lena moved it to the side table and then headed back to Mariana.

Mariana was still asleep but her face was streaked with tears. Lena sat down beside her and gently stroked her fingers through the young girl's hair. "I love you." She whispered to the sleeping girl. No matter what mistakes she made their love for her would never change.

* * *

Stef hated the bar even before she entered it. The entrance itself was through a dark, dingy passage and she could hear rats squeaking nearby. As soon as she entered the smell of stale cigarette smoke hit her and stung her eyes.

"God, why would anyone come here." She asked her partners rhetorically.

"Apparently this place is the number one spot for trading." One of the other officers said.

Stef wasn't originally on this case and was only called on today because of girls involved and once their statements were taken and they were handed over to their rightful guardians or the state and introduced to their new therapists she would be off the case again and so Stef didn't really know the background of the place except that her partners had been trying for months to shut it down.

"Some of the girls are reportedly as young at thirteen." Another man said as they prepared to raid the place. So far no one had really paid much attention to them and the thick smoke, poor lighting and their dark uniforms kept them practically hidden.

"POLICE FREEZE" One of Stef's partners yelled as he pulled out his gun and entered the bar, while another male cop held up his badge. Stef and her other female coworkers stepped back, not wanting to frighten the young girls - they were, after all, there to help them.

Someone turned on the lights and the room was flooded in light and was now visible. There was silence in the room as all eyes were on them. Stef looked around once her eyes adjusted to the bright lights and she felt instantly depressed by what she saw. Men in sleazy clothes, gaudy jewelry and ugly tattoos littered the place while girl's in outfits inappropriate even for a hooker carried glasses of drinks and bowls of chips and peanuts to each table. Stef felt like crying as she looked at the girls' faces - some of them really did look extremely young but still their faces looked like they had the weight of the world on their shoulders. Her heart when out to them and she wondered who they were and why they were here to begin with. Had they been kidnapped, run away, homeless and what else were they being forced to do and how come they hadn't been found earlier.

As Stef looked around and began to gather the young girls to get their names, ages and statements her phone rang.

"I'll be right back." She told her partners as Mike's name flashed across her screen. She hurried to an empty corner, desperate to find out what Mike knew. Her eyes continued to scan the room as she answered the call.

"Mike." She said, waiting for the news, knowing that he wouldn't expect pleasantries at a time like this.

"It's not her Stef, I'm sorry." Mike said, just as Stef's wandering eyes locked on Callie's fearful ones.


	11. Chapter 11

"I've got her." Stef said hurriedly as she disconnected the call and took several rapid steps towards the girl.

Callie involuntarily took a few steps back. This was the last place she ever expected to see cops. She'd heard from the other girls around that though the cops had their eye on the place no one ever entered because it was too big to take down. The money was good and while she wasn't entirely comfortable with her work, she needed it to survive. But now Stef was here and she'd spotted her and she knew she'd be in even more trouble than before. If she wasn't going to juvie before she definitely was now and this time they'd probably just throw away the key.

Stef walked right up to her, ignoring the distance she tried to keep and in the middle of the huge crowd, wrapped her arms around the girl and held her tight. "Oh thank god." She whispered as she squeezed even tighter. "We have been so worried about you."

Callie looked confused as she stood, ramrod straight, while Stef continued to hold her, wondering why Stef was hugging her when she should have been arresting her.

"I wish I could take you straight home love." Stef said, finally ending the hug but keeping a firm grip on her hands. "Bit I gotta take you in to the station first."

And there it was - the inevitable. Callie knew her life was over and she felt rather peaceful at the knowledge of what was to come. For the last six years she'd had no idea of what the next day would bring and she'd always felt a sense of unease at the unwanted surprises the future might hold but suddenly the thought of knowing what was coming was appeasing, even it meant being locked up for the rest of her life. Callie stood motionless as she was arrested along with the other girls and put into a police bus.

* * *

Stef made sure to follow right behind the bus. She didn't want to lose sight of it even for a millisecond, fearing that Callie might try to run again. She quickly dialed Lena, desperate to tell her the news as well.

"I found her." Stef said the moment Lena answered.

"Under the truck?" Lena confirmed, wondering if Mike had ID'd the girl.

"The bar." Stef corrected. "She was working there."

"Is she alright?" Lena asked the most important of the many questions filling her mind.

"I think so." Stef answered as honestly as she could. "I think she's more afraid than anything else."

"What's going to happen to her?" Lena asked.

"I'm not sure." Stef answered. "Basically the girls aren't in trouble but Callie's case is different."

"Because of her parole?" Lena questioned, knowing the answer already.

"Yes." Stef answered. "And the fact that she just got out of juvie. She shouldn't have been anywhere near a bar let alone working in one."

"How did she get a job in a bar in the first place?" Lena asked, wondering why any place would risk employing her - she barely looked sixteen let alone twenty-one.

"This isn't exactly what you picture when you hear the word bar." Stef answered. "It's just a bar as a cover, it's mainly just for trading drugs or other illegal stuff. They don't even have a name out front, just a dingy door and a dark passage.

"Then why work there?" Lena hated what she was hearing.

"I'm sure it paid pretty well." Stef answered. "The girls are so young and just a glimpse of them barely clothed will get them fantastic tips."

"Oh god." Lena mumbled, the dreadful image engrained in her mind for life.

"I don't think they make them do anything more than that though." Stef said, hoping to ease Lena's mind. Sex didn't seem to be the focus and for that Stef was definitely grateful.

* * *

Callie got to the station and was put in two huge rooms with all the other girls. Through the window she could see Stef and some other cops busy with paperwork and protocol but every so often Stef would look up, search for her, make eye-contact and once satisfied, continue with her work. Callie knew the older woman was keeping an eye on her.

As Callie sat waiting, she wondered what would happen now. One by one the girls were being taken to an adjoining room behind a glass partition and asked questions. None of the girl's came out looking too afraid though they went in filled with fear.

When it was Callie's turn she walked through the glass door and sat down on the chair just like everyone else. The two officers - one male and one female - began asking her the questions they'd obviously asked the others but what surprised Callie was that just moments after she sat down, Stef silently entered the room and stood at the back.

 _Why was she so focused on me?_ Callie wondered. She imagined it was because she wanted to make sure that Callie didn't escape the law this time but still, she wished she'd just let one of the other cops deal with one - one who didn't know her personally. The only thing Callie wished she could ask Stef before they parted ways for good was how Jude was doing. She hoped they'd kept him, like she'd assumed and that he was safe and taken care of. All this would be for nothing if that didn't happen.

The first thing that they told Callie was that she wasn't in trouble and just had to tell them everything she knew about the bar, what exactly they did and if she heard any names she could remember. Stef stood and listened as Callie gave them what little she knew, after all she had only been there for eight days.

When she was done, Callie went back to wait with the other girls and noticed them disappear one by one. Those who had families were returned to where they belonged, social workers were appointed to others and a few of the unlucky ones who weren't underage were led back to a holding cell. Callie wondered what her fate would be and imagined different scenarios when Stef walked up to her.

"Let's get home." Stef said, much to Callie's surprise. "It's really late."

Callie was too shocked to move. She definitely wasn't expecting this and she wasn't sure whether she was relieved not to be sent straight to juvie or not and because of this she was unable to move.

"Come on." Stef said again, drawing her out of her thoughts.

This time Callie stood up, though she had no recollection of doing so, and began to follow Stef out to the car.


	12. Chapter 12

The ride home was silent. Callie was still in a daze and Stef could see it. Besides, it was almost three in the morning and both of them were clearly tired. Stef hadn't slept much for several days on end and she could probably say the same about Callie. The young girl looked thinner and troubled and Stef wondered what she'd been through in the last two weeks. She couldn't see any external injuries but that didn't mean none were hidden or worse, internal.

Stef had messaged Lena right before she went to get Callie and leave and she knew that her wife would be waiting downstairs anxiously. And sure enough she was. The moment Stef pulled into the driveway, their front door opened and Lena walked out in her pajamas. She rushed over to the passenger door and opened it, desperate to see for herself that Callie really was there.

"Oh thank god." Lena whispered in much the same way that Stef had earlier that night. "Come here." She instructed, tugging on Callie's arm and pulling her out of the car to give her a hug. "You really had us worried." Lena said, holding on tight.

Once again Callie just stood, too bewildered to react. Nothing was happening like she had expected and as a result she didn't know how to even react. She just waited patiently for Lena to let go and then for her next instruction. That was the only thing that kept her moving - the fact that someone told her what to do.

"Let's get inside." Stef said after a moment and obediently Callie did as she was told.

Stef and Lena shared a look, nervous at how closed off and hollow the girl seemed.

"Sit love." Stef said gently once all three of them were inside. "Let's talk."

"Are you alright?" Lena asked the question on both their minds. "Are you hurt in any way?" She questioned.

Callie shook her head but said nothing.

"Are you sure?" Stef clarified, hoping that Callie wasn't trying to hide anything.

Callie nodded but once again remained silent.

"Did you or anyone _make_ you do anything you weren't comfortable with?" Stef asked more clearly, afraid of the answer but needing to know the truth.

Once again Callie shook her head. She knew what Stef was asking and she was telling the truth, but she was determined not to share the details.

"Alright" Stef said, letting it go for now though she was planning on asking again later, just to make sure.

"Are you hungry?" Lena asked. Just looking at the girl made her shudder.

Callie shook her head, remaining silent once again and slightly frustrating the two women in front of her.

"What happened Callie?" Stef questioned, desperate for some answered. "Why did you do this?" She couldn't understand why Callie would take the blame for something she hadn't done and then runaway and cause an even bigger mess for herself.

With no response from Callie Stef decided that Callie needed to know that they knew the truth - maybe then she wouldn't be so afraid to talk.

"We know it was Mariana who sold the drugs." Stef said, observing Callie carefully.

Callie's eyes instantly filled with shock. She thought they might eventually realize it wasn't her but to know that it was Mariana and admit it surprised her. She never expected them to really accept that she was innocent and then come looking for her as well.

"You shouldn't have taken the blame." Lena said, pulling Callie out of her thoughts. "Why did you?" She asked curiously.

Callie still refused to speak but she glanced up the stairs for just a split second, but it was long enough for the cop to understand.

"He's fine." Stef said. "Well, he's okay." She amended. Jude hadn't really been fine since Callie took off.

Callie looked gratefully at Stef. She'd needed to know how Jude was but just couldn't speak, not even to ask and Stef had understood and given her the answer anyway.

Stef smiled sadly at the girl, wondering what was going though her mind. She wished she could just pull her out of this darkness that seemed to surround her and protect her but she knew that wasn't the case. Callie had made a huge mess and it was going to be exceptionally hard if not impossible to clear things up for her.

"Let's get to bed." Lena said, glancing at the clock. It was half past three and they all needed to sleep. "I'll get Jude to come see you in the morning. You can have Mariana's bed, she's in our room tonight."

At that thought both Stef and Lena felt bad for returning the bed they had ordered of Callie but they had assumed she'd be going back to Juvie and saw no point in spending money on a bed that wasn't going to be used.

Just like the first night in this house Stef grabbed a pair of pajamas and a toothbrush for Callie and then walked her up to Mariana's room, encouraging her when she halted.

"Go ahead love." Stef said gently when Callie hesitated at the sight of Mariana's room.

Callie sucked it up and entered the room that was supposed to have been hers as well - at least for a while. She wasn't sure Mariana would be too happy having her sleep in her bed but she wasn't about to ask for the couch - talking was defiantly out - she couldn't risk saying the wrong thing.

"Just relax." Stef said, sensing Callie's nervousness. "You're safe. We'll worry about the rest in the morning."

Stef waited until Callie was under the blanket before giving Callie a gentle smile, flipping the light switch and heading into her own room to get ready for bed.


	13. Chapter 13

_Her hands were pinned above her head and his legs weighed heavily over her own - she couldn't move, she could barely breath and couldn't do anything about it. No matter what she tried he seemed to overpower her. He did what he wanted with her, despite her pleas and protests, despite her fear and pain - he owned her now and he would own her forever._

Callie woke with a start and bolted upright, looking around in the darkness. It took her a few moments to figure out where she was exactly and once she did she couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief - she was in Mariana's room, Mariana's bed and far away from _him_. Callie was just about to lay down again when something caught her eye. She squinted in the darkness and once her eyes adjusted she noticed a figure fast asleep on the floor by the bedroom door. It both warmed and angered Callie to know that Stef was there. On the one hand Stef obviously didn't trust her but on the other, she cared enough to sleep on the cold, hard floor for her.

Callie decided to just let things be and so with one more glance around the room she lay down, closed her eyes and fell into a peaceful, nightmare-free sleep for the first time in months.

* * *

When she woke again Stef was nowhere to be seen and Callie wondered if she'd imagined it. She quickly headed into the bathroom to brush her teeth. She didn't want to be around when Mariana came back into the room. She wasn't sure if the younger girl knew she was there or not but she didn't want to stick around to find out.

Callie finally headed downstairs after procrastinating for ages. She could hear Stef and Lena talking quietly and realized they were alone. She decided to go in and get things started - better do it before the kitchen was filled with kids.

"Good morning honey." Lena said, the first one to notice Callie standing awkwardly on the stairs. "Sleep well?"

Before Callie could answer she noticed a look on Stef's face telling her that she knew the younger girl had had a restless night.

"Okay I guess." Callie answered, surprising both women. Neither expected a verbal answer from the teen.

"Hungry?" Lena asked, getting up to begin breakfast. It was Saturday morning and her other kids wouldn't be up for a couple more hours at least. She was thankful for their uninterrupted time with Callie.

Callie sat down opposite Stef at the table and watched as Lena began mixing batter for some waffles and frying some sausages.

"Want to talk about it?" Stef asked, referring to Callie's nightmare. She'd been keeping guard over Callie and noticed the girl practically jump out of bed but had chosen to let her be. Callie was clearly already overwhelmed and Stef figured the middle of the night wasn't the time for a heart to heart.

Callie shook her head, not talking her eyes off Lena. She refused to look directly at Stef for fear of what she'd see. It was Stef that found her in the less than appropriate outfit at the bar, Stef that had brought her home, Stef that had spent the night on the floor beside her and Stef that had the ability to see what you were trying to hide.

"Okay." Stef accepted the answer. Callie had been though a lot and she decided not to push her. They'd deal with one thing at a time and her first priority was to make sure that Callie was okay.

It was then that Lena set a plate containing two waffles, some bacon and sausages and a glass of orange juice in front of her. "Eat up." Lena said with a smile.

"Thanks." Callie mumbled and picked up her fork, once again surprising both women.

Callie wouldn't admit it but she'd been living on chips and peanuts from the bar for most of her time away. She refused to spend too much on food and had instead saved up as much as she could. One meal a day was all she allotted herself and as a result she was constantly hungry. Another reason she chose to eat was to give herself something to do while sitting awkwardly in front of Stef and Lena.

"Callie." Stef began just as Callie knew she would. "Callie are you sure you're alright?" Stef asked again though she'd already done so the night before.

Callie remained silent for a few seconds, her chewing slowed down and she seemed to be swallowing a lump in her throat. "I'm fine." She finally croaked out before swallowing the bite in her mouth whole.

"Did anybody touch you or hurt you in any way?" Stef clarified in more words than she had before.

"No." Callie answered. "They don't make you do that."

Stef sighed in relief. She knew the place wasn't a brothel but she still couldn't let the fear go until she was certain.

"What do they make you do?" Stef asked, hoping the girl would answer.

Callie shrugged as she thought for a moment. "Just serve the customers." Callie answered. "Everything else they do themselves."

"Selling drugs." Stef asked, wondering if that was all.

Callie nodded, still staring intently at her plate.

"Did you take anything?" Lena interrupted. "Try it?"

"No." Callie answered. "I was just working there. It was just a job and I needed the cash."

The three were silent for a bit and then Stef decided to open up to the girl herself.

"Mariana told us the truth." She began, making Callie look up at her. "It was a little too late but we've known for a while that you didn't sell the drugs."

"Why did you take the blame?" Lena interrupted one more time.

Once again Callie shrugged, she wasn't sure of anything anymore and all she was really doing was waiting for the next hurdle she had to jump over. She'd resigned herself to the fact that this was it for the rest of her life.

"Callie I gotta be honest with you." Stef said. "You really made a huge mess when you ran away."

Callie nodded knowingly. She never seemed to do anything right no matter how hard she tried.

"You put yourself in a whole lot more trouble that you were in to begin with." Stef continued. "Bill is coming over in a few hours so we can talk and find out what exactly we can do to get you the lightest consequences but it won't be easy."

Callie looked like she wanted to cry but was holding it in and both moms wished desperately that she would allow herself to fall apart just a little. She was a child and she shouldn't have to deal with all this on her own. But Callie, much like Stef, was determined not to let anyone see her pain even though it often got them into trouble.

"We won't give up." Stef continued. "We'll fight as hard as we can but we need you to work with us. You have to follow the rules."

"What about Jude?" Callie asked, wondering what would happen to him once she was sentenced.

"Don't worry about him." Stef stopped her. "You need to worry about yourself right now. You are just as important and you need to take care of yourself too."

Callie didn't answer. There was nothing she could say. Stef could hand out these little self-worth speeches all she wanted but it wouldn't do much difference if Callie chose not to believe her.

"How about we get Jude?" Lena asked, sensing that the teen had had just about enough for a bit.


	14. Chapter 14

Jude sleepily followed Lena downstairs, wondering what she wanted to talk to him about. Lately they had been working together on his homework and he figured it would have something to do with that He had a placement test coming up and she was determined to help him through. He didn't think it was about Callie - he'd begun to give up hope on ever finding her. He knew that when Callie wanted to be gone, she'd find a way.

Jude entered the kitchen and for a moment there was silence. He hadn't yet noticed Callie and both Stef and Lena were waiting for his reaction. He glanced around, wondering what was happening and spotted her.

"CALLIE!" He exclaimed as he ran up to her and wrapped himself around her, hugging her around the neck as hard as he could. "Callie." He said again, almost fearful that he was just imagining it.

"Hey baby." Callie said, a beautiful smile spread on her face - the first one since Stef had found her and she imagined the first one since she'd left home.

The remained in a tight hug for a few more seconds until Jude pulled away and pushed Callie hard enough to make her lose her balance and practically fall off her stool.

"Whoa." Lena said as she reached out to help steady Callie.

"You left me." Jude accused, ignoring Lena completely. "You just took off and didn't take me with you."

Callie looked at her bother in shock, wondering why he was doing this in front of Stef and Lena. She didn't want to have to answer anything in front of them.

"You just left." Jude said again, hurt clear in his eyes.

"You were safe Jude." Callie answered. "I couldn't do that to you."

"So were you." Jude pointed out. "You didn't do anything wrong but you threw it all away for Mariana."

"They wouldn't have believed me Jude." Callie said, almost forgetting that Stef and Lena were even in the room.

"They would have." Jude answered frankly. "You just never gave them a chance." He had been pleasantly surprised when Mariana had confessed and neither Stef nor Lena had doubted it. They'd excused Callie immediately and hadn't let their own daughter get away with anything.

Stef and Lena shared a look and smiled. At least Jude had learned to trust them completely and hopefully he would help Callie do the same.

Callie stared at Jude wondering how he'd changed so much in just a few days. He seemed to be much more independent and he'd learned to trust others so easily even though she'd always told him not to. He seemed to have either forgotten or ignored every rule she ever taught him and it didn't seem to get him into any trouble. Callie suddenly felt an invisible wall come up between them. Jude wasn't entirely her's anymore - in just a small way he was one of them now.

As Callie was lost in thought Mariana came downstairs looking for breakfast. She knew today would be consequence day but she wasn't afraid. She made a mistake and deserved the consequences and she was okay with that so long as her moms' still loved her just the same.

"CALLIE!" Mariana squealed when she saw the older girl at the table and much like Jude had earlier she ran to her and gave her a hug. "Oh-my-god, you're okay."

Callie sat in shock, waiting for Mariana to let go of her. She wondered what was with these people and hugs - each one of them had hugged her as though she was their own daughter instead of a girl they only knew for three days before she ran away and made a 'huge mess' as Stef put it.

"I'm so, so sorry." Mariana said, finally letting go of the girl. "I was a total bitch."

"Mariana." Stef said disapprovingly.

"I was." Mariana answered honestly.

Neither mom could deny it and so they chose to remain silent. Mariana turned back to Callie and continued to apologize.

"I'm so sorry." She said again. "And I'm so glad that you're back." She leaned in and hugged her again. It never once occurred to her that Callie may not want her hugs or her apology or even her presence for that matter. "Whatever you want, it's yours." Mariana said, apologizing in the only way she knew how.

Callie stared blankly into space, waiting for it all to stop. This was just too much for her - she was too used to blending into the background and suddenly being in the spotlight wasn't helping. Every other family had just tolerated them in their houses but here, Stef and Lena treated them like actual people and that was a new experience for Callie - one she wasn't quite sure she liked.

* * *

Soon after lunch Bill came over to talk about what they could do for Callie. Stef had called him from the station the night before to let him know that she'd found her. He seemed genuinely concerned for Callie though he didn't seem too hopeful for her. She'd violated her parole and whatever her reasons - she'd broken the law. Now his only hope was to get her the lightest sentence possible.

Stef and Lena had ushered the other kids out of the house, making Brandon and Jesus promise to keep an eye on Jude and then tried to prepare Callie as best they could.

"So Callie had a few rules to follow under probation and it's very hard to find loopholes when they are broken." Bill admitted sadly. "She ran away, was in a bar and attempted to escape custody and none of those looks good.

All three women sat and listened to Bill, each thinking of ways to go around the system. Callie had already been in juvie before and therefore this would be considered a second offense. The law rarely gave second chances and Callie didn't seem to fit the bill.

"I'll talk to the judge and see what I can do." Bill promised. "But I don't see her getting away lightly. She's old enough to know right from wrong and with a past record, chances are slim to none."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Stef asked, wondering if her position as a cop or their position as her foster parents could help in any way.

"Not really." Bill answered honestly. "You've barely known her long and she's a ward of the state."

"If you can think of anything then please, please let us know." Stef urged.

"I will." Bill promised. "For now just keep her out of trouble." He said to Stef though he was looking directly at Callie as he said it, silently telling her to behave.

* * *

"You alright love?" Stef asked.

She walked out back to find Callie sitting under a tree just staring into space, a distant, haunted look in her eyes.

"Fine." Callie answered robotically, though it was obvious even to here that it held no meaning.

"Talk to me." Stef urged. "What exactly happened. Why did you run? What did you do?"

Callie looked to Stef for a few moments, trying to judge her sincerity. She needed to let someone else carry the load for a while because she was just a straw away from crashing under the weight. But she was nervous because she'd never even considered allowing herself to become that vulnerable. But something about Stef made her just want to take a chance. So with one deep breath and a huge leap of faith, Callie let her in.


	15. Chapter 15

"I did it for Jude." Callie answered honestly. "If I went to Juvie then he'd get to stay."

Stef didn't know what to say. How could one sixteen year old think so little of herself?

"No one would believe me if I said it was Mariana." Callie said before glancing up at Stef. "At least I didn't think anyone would." She amended, thinking back to what Jude had told her about her new foster moms. "But he liked it here and you guys seemed nice so I took the blame. If I didn't and you had no proof then you'd ask for us to be sent away and Jude would have to leave too."

"Callie, I wish you would believe me when I tell you that you matter too." Stef said sincerely, thinking about the girl who had risked her life for her brother. "Yes Jude is important and as his big sister you must look out for him but not at the expense of yourself honey." She stated clearly.

Callie didn't say anything for she didn't entirely believe Stef. She'd learned long ago that her sole purpose for living was to get Jude though this and she'd do whatever it took to make that happen.

"Well why did you run?" Stef continued to question, realizing that it was going to take more than one or two conversations to convince the girl of her worth.

"I couldn't go back to juvie." Callie admitted somewhat shamefully. "It was horrible in there and... I just couldn't do it again."

Stef looked sadly at the child in front of her, wishing she could just magically take away all her bad experiences and pain.

"So I left." Callie answered. "And I hoped that you'd keep Jude since you were willing to foster us both for a while."

Stef sighed wondering how this girl managed to keep so much locked up inside her and not have exploded yet.

"And what did you do?" Stef asked, needing to know the story.

This was where Callie hesitated. She wasn't sure what to say, especially with Stef being a cop.

But Stef must have sensed it for she leaned just a bit closer to Callie, reached across for her hand and encouraged her with a slight squeeze.

"I got on a bus." Callie answered. "I rode it to the last stop and ended up in La Jolla. I walked around for a bit and there was a little store but I had no money with me." Callie swallowed thickly. "I left most of it for Jude and what I had I used on the bus ticket and a bottle of water."

Stef sighed and Callie quickly pulled her hand away and continued, not wanting to hear another lecture from the blond.

"There were these girls there and um, hookers, I guess." Callie admitted awkwardly and she could practically feel Stef tense completely even though they weren't touching anymore. "One of them offered to let me stay with her and show me the ropes. She said it's easy money and not so bad once you get used to it."

She went silent then, staring intently at a blade of grass. She wasn't sure how to go further. There were too many demons and she wasn't sure Stef wanted to hear them - she wasn't sure she was ready for Stef to hear them.

"Did you?" Stef asked softly, the nervousness and heartache clear in her voice.

Callie shook her head though her gaze never left the blade of grass.

"Callie?" Stef asked in a warning tone, definitely not willing to accept a lie about this.

"I didn't." Callie confirmed verbally, though it was soft. She still couldn't look up for she knew that Stef would pry and a part of Callie was glad because there was one secret she felt so weighed down by and always wanted at least one person she could share it with.

"How come?" Stef asked. "Not that I'm not glad to hear that." She confirmed with a slight smile before turning serious again. "What kept you from it?"

Callie shrugged, not because she didn't know the answer but because she didn't know how to begin. She wasn't quite bold enough to say 'because I was raped'.

"Callie?" Stef prompted gently when she noticed the girl lost in thought.

Callie finally looked up at Stef with wide, vulnerable eyes, almost begging her to just know what she needed to say without actually making her say it.

"Callie." Stef said again, begging the younger girl to tell it it wasn't what she was thinking.

"Um, I was raped." Callie finally confirmed, once again focusing on the blade of grass.

"Callie." Stef said sympathetically, tears brimming in her eyes though she was determined not to let them fall. "Honey, I..." She tried to find the right words to say but she couldn't find any so instead she grabbed the girl and pulled her close, hugging her tight. She could feel Callie tense up in her arms but she didn't let go - the child needed it and it was definitely long overdue.

When Stef finally let go and allowed Callie to sit up again she looked at her and noticed the blank, almost hollow look on her face like they were talking about a really boring book instead of her own experiences. She knew that Callie had shut down and needed help and she was determined to get it for her. Whatever happened to Callie she would make sure that she was taken care of because it seemed that time and time again the system had failed her still she kept bouncing back just for the sake of her brother.

* * *

"And they didn't do anything to the boy?" Lena asked in anger when Stef told her about their conversation.

"Apparently the parents said that she was a problem and sent her away." Stef answered, equally upset. "Jude was sent away with her. I think that's why she left him behind, so that she wouldn't drag him down with her again."

"But Jude thinks she abandoned him." Lena noted. "Gosh they are just children but their lives are so messed up."

"I keep thinking about the twins." Stef admitted. "What would their lives be had we not gotten to them that young."

"Oh god, I don't even want to think about it." Lena said, shaking her head and refusing to allow those thought to begin.

The two settled into an easy silence, both engrossed in their respective books when the fight began.

"JUST LEAVE ME ALONE MARIANA!" Callie yelled, pulling both moms out of bed instantly.


	16. Chapter 16

By the time Stef and Lena got to the living room Callie was standing in the middle of the living room shooting daggers at the younger girl who looked surprised and hurt.

"What's going on?" Stef asked looking at the two of them.

The moment Callie heard Stef's voice she instantly backed away, her features softening and her gaze shifting to the floor. Mariana had been annoying her all day trying to make up for her mistake but all Callie wanted was to be left alone and even though she'd repeatedly asked the girl to give her space, she just seemed to do whatever she wanted. Apart from that Jude seemed to be keeping his distance from Callie and instead followed Jesus around like an obedient puppy and Callie began to feel more lost than ever. She'd finally snapped when Mariana was once again trying to have her way.

"I just offered her my bed." Mariana said defensively. "I thought she deserved a real bed and I'd take the couch."

Callie didn't have anything to say. She's already made the mistake of losing her temper with Mariana and she wasn't about to make it worse.

"Callie." Stef prompted, hoping the other girl would voice her opinion.

"I'll sleep wherever you want me to sleep." Callie said as she noticed Jude on the stairs, clearly desperate to avoid any confrontation.

"Where would you like to sleep?" Lena asked gently from behind Stef.

Callie shrugged. She had no opinion; or rather, she wouldn't let them know she had an opinion. The truth was she'd rather sleep on the couch than have anything to do with Mariana but if they told her to share the bed with the retched girl she'd do that as well.

"I was just trying to be nice." Mariana said in exasperation.

"Go on up to bed Mariana." Stef said, eyeing Callie closely.

"Fine." Mariana mumbled before heading upstairs past the three boys who were watching.

"You three can go as well." Stef said and waited until they were gone before turning back to Callie. "You okay with the couch?"

Callie nodded silently and the three of them just stood in awkward silence until Lena mercifully ended the conversation.

"Get some sleep honey." Lena said as she guided Callie back to the couch. "We'll see you in the morning."

Stef stayed for a moment longer, watching Callie carefully before wishing her a good night and heading upstairs as well.

* * *

But the following morning was no better. Mariana was once again determined to make it up to Callie whether the later liked it or not.

"It'll be super-fabulous. You should totally come." Mariana said as she sat down on the porch swing next to Callie.

Callie was using all the energy she had not to smash the guitar in her hand over Mariana's head. She couldn't believe how annoying the younger girl was and clearly believed she deserved whatever she wanted regardless of anyone else.

"I'm fine, thanks." Callie said through gritted teeth. She couldn't, in any universe, imagine a shopping trip with Mariana and Lexi to be 'super-fabulous'."

"No, I'm serious." Mariana coaxed. "We are fantastic at picking just the perfect outfit. Really, we should be like, personal shoppers or something." She said before a lightbulb went off over hear head. Her excitement grew as she clapped her hands in glee. "Oh my god, I could be your personal shopper." She said as though it was the most amazing idea ever. "We could give you a total makeover and get rid of those blankets you keep wearing."

Callie couldn't help but laugh at that. Not only was Mariana annoying her to pieces, trying to get her way in everything but also insulting her in the process. "I'm serious too." Callie said firmly. "I'm not interested."

"Fine." Mariana said as though Callie was letting go of the most amazing opportunity. "But if you change your mind, I'm still here."

"Good to know." Callie said, watching with joy as Mariana retreated into the house. Finally she was gone and Callie could go back to racking her brain for the guitar chords her mother had taught her.

* * *

"It's not like you have any other friends to sit with." Mariana said as she followed Callie out to the lunch tables on Monday. "This way you won't look like a dork sitting all by yourself."

"I like sitting by myself." Callie said, heading for an empty table towards the back. "Besides, I have this book to finish, I'm already behind."

"Just cliff-note's it" Mariana said, grabbing her arm and directing her towards the table that Lexi was already sitting at. "Homework during lunch is just so lame."

Callie bit her tongue as she followed Mariana to the table and sat in silence as Mariana and Lexi talked endlessly about the crap they'd bought the day before. Callie began to wonder if she was better off on the streets. At least there the girls weren't pesky, entitled brats that hovered around where they weren't wanted.

* * *

"Where's Callie?" Stef asked when she came home and found her four other children sitting around the television watching some show or the other.

"Library." Mariana answered. "Said she'd be late, she has a book report due tomorrow."

Stef frowned and went in search of Lena and found her in the kitchen making dinner.

"Did you know Callie was in the library?" She asked as she gave Lena a quick kiss."

"Mariana told me." Lena informed Stef.

"So she didn't ask you?" Stef confirmed.

"No, she disappeared right after school." Lena admitted before grinning slightly. "I think she's only there to avoid Mariana."

Stef smiled too but she couldn't help the nervous feeling that Callie had run again. She couldn't bare of it to happen twice and she wasn't a patient enough person to wait around till curfew came by to find out.

"I'm going to go pick her up." Stef said as she grabbed her keys from the bowl. "She must be tired."

"She's there honey." Lena said, letting Stef know she knew the real reason. "She's not going to run." And she believed it. She figured there was no way Callie would open up to Stef so much if she hadn't formed a connection with the woman.

"I'm going to get her." Stef said again, letting Lena know that she needed to do this.

Lena smiled and watched Stef walk out the door. Stef was protective of everyone, especially her family but even she was surprised at how protective she'd become of Callie. But then again Lena could see so much of Stef in Callie it was like having an insight to her wife as a teenager. She began to realize that the Jacob siblings belonged with them - if only they could find a way to keep Callie's sentencing light.


	17. Chapter 17

"Hiding from Mariana?" Stef asked as she walked up to a table and found Callie writing fervently on a notepad.

Callie's head whipped up as she looked guiltily at the blond, wondering what to say. Stef obviously knew the truth but still, Callie didn't feel comfortable admitting it, especially since Mariana was her daughter.

Stef laughed as she sat down beside Callie and shut the novel in front of her, letting her know that the study-session for the night was over. "She means well." Stef defended her daughter. "She just doesn't realize how annoying she can be."

Callie smiled slightly, humored by the fact that even Stef admitted it.

"Honestly, I'm so thankful she's annoying." Stef continued, her mind far away on her daughter. "She was so different when she first came to us and it took us a long time to get her to feel safe enough to make mistakes." She said, once again eying Callie. "I'm not saying she deserves to get away with anything but just the fact that she believes that it's forgivable is the best feeling in the world."

Callie looked away sadly. She knew that she'd never have a family like that - one that would love her so unconditionally. She wondered if she'd also have turned out like Mariana had she been adopted by Stef and Lena.

"You are allowed to tell her off you know." Stef continued, pulling Callie out of her thoughts. "You don't have to go along with whatever she wants."

Callie didn't say anything. She figured it was better to just stay silent and listen rather than risk saying the wrong thing.

Stef studied Callie for a moment, reading the girl like a book. She knew Callie was still uncomfortable voicing her opinions, especially to Stef and Lena but she wanted Callie to know that just because Mariana was their daughter didn't mean she was always right.

"You matter too." Stef said. "Foster kid or not, you matter. Don't ever forget that."

Callie smiled though she didn't fully believe that. She'd seen first hand what it means to be a foster kid living in a home with real kids. Mariana wasn't exactly what she'd define as a real kid but she was pretty damn close and Callie wouldn't ever be able to catch up.

"How about this." Stef offered when she noticed Callie rejecting the thought. "I'll talk to Mariana and get her off your back and you pick the movie we watch tonight."

Stef wouldn't normally allow a movie on a weekday but she needed some way of showing Callie that her choices and opinions were worth something. Lena was already in the middle of dinner so a movie was the first thing she could think of. And in a house with five kids, getting the chance to pick the movie on your own was a pretty big deal.

* * *

"I was just trying to make it up to her." Mariana said. "She has like, no friends and I just thought that I'd invite her to hang out with us."

Mariana was sitting on her bed with her homework spread out in front of her, Lena sat in front of her and Stef sat on the chair at her desk. Callie's freshly made bed was in the corner but still hadn't been used. Stef eyed it wondering how long the girl would get a chance to sleep in it.

"We understand that but maybe that's not what she needs." Stef said. Mariana was having a hard time accepting that maybe Callie wasn't exactly like her. "You have to keep in mind the things that she likes."

"But all she ever wants to do is sit around and play that stupid guitar." Mariana complained. "It's like Brandon all over again." She added in disgust. "I thought it would be fun to have another girl around."

"You didn't think so when she first got here." Stef pointed out, ignoring the fact that her daughter found her son boring. Sibling rivalry was a given and as long as no harm was done she'd let them fight it out.

"I wasn't exactly thrilled with sharing my room." Mariana admitted.

"But now you were even willing to give up your bed." Stef said, a small smirk on her face.

Mariana looked down sadly. "I feel bad about what I did." She confessed. "I didn't mean to hurt her and I didn't want her to run away. I just didn't want to get into trouble."

"I get that." Stef said, understanding Mariana's logic. "But making it up means keeping her choices in mind and they need not necessarily be yours."

"So what do I do?" Mariana asked looking up at her two moms, hoping for some good ideas.

"Well, if it's space she wants most then how about giving her some of that." Lena suggested.

"But then she'll never forgive me." Mariana practically whined. "She'll just go on pretending like I don't exist."

"She's scared honey." Lena said, feeling sorry for Callie.

"She's anxious about her hearing and she needs to know what's going to happen." Stef explained. "You're probably not even on her radar right now."

"I hope they don't send her back to juvie." Mariana said in desperation before her eyes lit up with an idea. "Maybe I could talk to the judge and tell him what really happened." She said, momentarily forgetting that she'd sold drugs illegally and could get into serous trouble for that.

"We'll see." Stef said quickly. She didn't want to give either girl false hope. From what Bill had told them, Callie had a very slim chance of avoiding Juvie.

"Well, what else can I do besides giving her space?" Mariana asked, not entirely pleased with the plan. "How else will she know how sorry I am?"

"Maybe try writing her a letter." Lena suggested. "Then she can read it whenever she is ready and you aren't annoying her all the time."

"I can do that, but what if she doesn't ever ready it?" Mariana asked.

"Then that's something you're just going to have to accept." Stef said. "You can't make her forgive you honey."

"Fine." The girl said dejectedly, realizing that she may have gone a bit too far this time and her charming personality and batting eyes won't solve this one.

Stef and Lena shared a look wondering if they should move on to the next topic now that this particular one seemed to have been solved.

"We're also here to talk about your consequences." Stef said, eyeing Mariana as she began fidgeting with her books.

Mariana's head snapped up as her eyes went wide. She was hoping that they'd forget. It never usually took them this long to dish out consequences but they'd been overly distracted between trying to find Callie and keeping her punishment as limited as possible.

"You are grounded until the end of the term." Lena began but Mariana cut her off.

"That's two months away." Mariana complained in shock. "What about my party?" She asked in disappointment.

"It's not going to happen." Stef said, letting her daughter know that whining wasn't going to do any good right now.

Mariana sighed in frustration as she turned her attention back to Lena.

"And during your grounding period you will be doing all Callie's chores around the house as well." Lena finished.

"Fine." Mariana said, realizing that she deserved it and Callie deserved the exception from housework.

"There's one more thing." Stef said. "We want you to volunteer at the children's hospital."

"For what?" Mariana asked, wondering what that had to do with her.

"You need to understand that there are people less fortunate than you and you aren't the only one that matters." Lena explained.

Mariana looked away shamefully. She didn't like that her moms were implying that she was self-centered and spoilt.

"Whatever." She mumbled, now embarrassed as well as disappointed in her cancelled birthday party.

"I'm sorry Mariana but you really need to learn that things don't always revolve around you." Lena pointed out.

"We love you but this is something you really need." Stef added, hoping that Mariana would outgrow this selfish phase, and soon.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Happy 2016 everyone! Have a wonderful year filled with all you could ever dream of.

Thanks for reading.

Love Junebug and Buggling.


	18. Chapter 18

"I can do my own chores." Callie insisted for the fifth time as Mariana tried to take out the trash.

"Well moms said I had to do your chores till school's out." Mariana pulled the bag back. She was determined not to be labeled as selfish and spoiled again.

"Well that's your problem." Callie said. "I do my own work."

"Fine, whatever." Mariana huffed and shoved the bag at the older girl before disappearing up the stairs.

Callie began tying up the bag and replacing the trashcan with a new one before going to throw out the old one when Stef descended the stairs.

"Everything okay?" Stef asked, eyeing Callie carefully.

Callie rolled her eyes at the fact that Mariana had obviously tattled. For a girl who kept a lot of secrets she sure blabbed a lot.

"Fine." Callie answered.

"You know Mariana is supposed to do that." Stef said, pointing to the bag Callie was hauling to the door.

"It's my turn." Callie answered flatly.

"I know." Stef said, following Callie out the door, determined not to just let her go. "She's supposed to take over your chores."

"Why?" Callie questioned. "What's that going to do, magically fix everything?" She snapped before taking a deep breath and calming herself down. "I'm sorry, I'm just tired." She apologized. She looked up at Stef with pleading eyes. "Please, just let me do my share." She requested. She already felt out of place in this house. She felt uncomfortable with all the attention and focus and she didn't want to add any more debt to the list.

"I know you're stressed." Stef said, understanding the girl's sour mood. "I get that you're afraid and you just want to find out what's happening and that's part of why we did this. Mariana needs a way to make things up to you even in a small way and you need to to relax. You have barely eaten and you're up half the night..."

Stef was cut off by Callie's eyes widening in surprise.

"Yes, I know you come down here almost every night." Stef said, as she watched Callie's expression.

"I'm sorry." Callie said, not sure why she was apologizing.

"Don't be." Stef said. "I just wish you'd feel comfortable enough to come and talk to us when you feel anxious or worried." She added sadly.

Callie looked down, she wasn't comfortable enough and she doubted she'd ever be.

"Anyway." Stef changed the topic back to the original one in order to help Callie feel less awkward. "Mariana needs the consequence, it's good for her to do the work and you need the extra time to just rest and relax. So until further notice, you have no chores." She stated firmly.

* * *

But it wasn't as easy as that. Callie became agitated and irritable each time Mariana came to take over her tasks. Callie eventually took to helping Jude with his and then gradually taking them over as well.

"It's okay bud, I'll do this." Callie said, taking the dry laundry and beginning to fold it. "You go out back and play."

Jude happily disappeared leaving Callie alone to fold the laundry. Her mind began to drift once again to her upcoming court date and various scenarios played though her mind. The worst of all was Juvie - Callie knew she wouldn't survive another stint in there. But on the other hand sending her to juvie meant that Jude couldn't go with her and so maybe, if they got lucky, Stef and Lena would keep him. All these years Callie believed that the rule of not splitting siblings up was their only good luck but suddenly even that seemed like a curse - if Callie didn't get sent to Juvie then Jude would be taken from this home too and that was the sole reason Callie hoped that she did.

Callie was completely lost in these thoughts when Stef and Lena walked in. "Where's Mariana?" Stef asked, wondering why Callie was doing the work.

"Um, homework I think." Callie answered, continuing to fold Jesus' sweatshirt.

"Well then let her fold that later." Stef pointed to the stack.

"Oh, it's not mine." Callie said. "It's Jude's turn actually, he wanted to go out back and play basket ball with Jesus." She lied.

Callie had known exactly why Stef had asked for Mariana but she'd pretended to be clueless hoping that Stef would just leave it alone. She hated sitting back while all the other kids had work, especially Mariana. She didn't want another reason for the girl to start hating her.

"You don't have to earn your stay Callie." Stef said, seeing right through the girl's attempt. "You're a kid and we are your guardians, you have a right to whatever you need."

"Everyone has chores." Callie said, reminding Stef that these weren't punishments or abusive in any way.

"And when they don't do them we kick them out?" Stef questioned.

"In that case Brandon and Jesus would have been out years ago." Lena added with a laugh thinking back to the number of times she'd had to remind the two of trash day and the Day-Glo post-its she's begun sticking on the chore chart to remind them.

But Callie had no answer and so she remained silent. She knew that neither woman would really be mad if something was forgotten - they'd just remind you to the point of crazy and maybe take away some TV time.

"They're just chores." Callie said, trying yet again to get them to let her do her share. "No one ever told a kid _not_ to do their chores."

"Well I'm telling you." Stef said, more determined now than ever to get Callie to succumb. She desperately needed Callie to see that she wasn't a maid or had to earn her stay and apart from that she wanted Callie to let her guard and firm stubbornness go just a little. This was one way for Callie to learn that even if she disobeyed, even if she didn't do her share, even if she fought back, she still had a place with them and she wouldn't suffer inappropriate consequences.

"Honey, just relax for a while." Lena said, hoping to keep the peace between the two most hot-headed members of her house. "You should be jumping at this opportunity."

"Well I'm not." Callie said defiantly. "I just want things to be the way they should be." Callie hadn't realized it but subconsciously she already felt completely safe. She was defying them and arguing back in an attempt to stay out of trouble but it hadn't struck her that to do so she had to already feel secure with them.

"They are." Stef said, just as determined as Callie. "Mariana did something wrong and has to now do extra chores and you were the victim so you get a free pass."

"But I don't want it." Callie practically groaned like a typical teenager.

"Too bad." Stef said, unable to hide the smile at Callie's sudden normalcy.

"Ahah." Callie groaned in frustration as she dumped a pair of Stef's uniform pants back into the basket so she could get away when Stef's phone rang.

"Bill?" Stef said in a hurry the moment she saw the name on the screen.

Stef watched as Callie instantly stopped as did Lena. All three of them needed to know what he had to say about Callie's court date and she was pretty sure that all three of them were nervously holding their breath.


	19. Chapter 19

"Tomorrow?" Callie asked in nervous surprise.

"It's the only day he got." Stef explained, leaving out the part about where they wanted to skip the court all together and send her straight to Juvie for all the rules she'd broken.

Callie hesitated for a moment. She had questions but she didn't want to seem scared. She was going and she wasn't going to allow anyone the satisfaction of seeing her tears. She took a deep breath, straightened her shoulders and spoke.

"I don't want anyone there." She said with an indifferent manner.

"Anyone?" Stef clarified, wondering exactly who she meant in that blanket group.

"Not you, not Lena or the kids." Callie confirmed. "Not Jude." She specified. There was no way she wanted him to watch her get cuffed and dragged away for a second time in his life. This time she had somewhere to leave him first and she was going to do just that.

Stef raised an eyebrow as she studied Callie. It was clear that the girl was trying to protect herself but it was just as clear that she was scared and resisting help and support. Stef had been a mom and a cop for far too many years to fall for that and she knew that Lena could see it as well. The younger woman had worked with children and teenagers for close to fifteen years now and had seen her fair share of coverups.

"Are you sure honey?" Lena asked, wondering if Callie thought that maybe they didn't want to be there.

"Yes." Callie said. "This is my problem, not yours." She avoided saying that they were free to move on with their lives because right now the last thing she needed was another lecture about how she was worth more than she gave herself credit for.

"Well unfortunately that choice isn't yours." Stef said.

Callie immediately reacted, ready to argue - she wasn't going to take anything more from these women. She had already taken more than she planned to but her excuse - or so she kept telling herself - was that she was living here with them, now however, she had no good reason.

But Stef stopped her before she even had a chance to begin. "We have to be there, we are your current guardians." She was lying through her teeth but Callie didn't know that and there was no way Stef was going to just sit back and leave a sixteen year old to her own defenses.

Callie's mouth instantly snapped shut. That was the one thing she couldn't really do anything about. They were here guardians, for another twenty four hours at least and so they were responsible for her.

"Fine." Callie finally agreed with the same amount of indifference as earlier. "But no kids." She said firmly, still determined not to have Jude there.

"Okay." Stef agreed. "But we are going to have to talk to them. Jude has a right to know and quite frankly so does Mariana." She said. She knew that if things didn't work out well for Callie then Mariana would beat herself up for ages.

Callie's face fell at the mention of Jude. She hated that she was upsetting his life again. Once again she wished that she could just cut all ties with him, leave him here and have Stef and Lena adopt him - after all, they'd done it with the twins so why not Jude?

"He'll be okay." Lena said, reading Callie's thoughts like a book. "We'll make sure of it."

* * *

"But I want to go." Jude said, practically in tears. He had no idea what was going to happen to his sister but he wanted to be there. He needed to know.

"No." Callie said flatly.

"You can't stop me." Jude said, arguing with Callie, surprising everyone. "She can't, can she? He asked Stef for confirmation.

"Legally she can't but maybe we should respect her wishes." Stef said. It was one thing to insist that she and Lena attend but it was a whole other thing to deny her the privacy from the children.

"But why not?" Jude asked Callie. He wanted so badly to be there to support her and find out what was to happen to her so that he knew when she'd be back or where to find her but if Stef said he couldn't go then he wouldn't but he needed to know why.

"Because it's going to be really boring and I'll be going to juvie." Callie answered flatly. She didn't mind him knowing - she couldn't keep it from him after all - she just didn't want him to see it.

"You don't know that for sure." Mariana interviewed, wishing she was right. She hoped that Callie wouldn't go back to juvie. She wished she could just undo this entire mess that she'd basically caused.

"I know my luck, and it's never good." Callie said flatly, an eerie lack of emotion in her voice.

"Why don't we just wait and see what happens." Lena suggested, hoping to give Callie some comfort and that it would be enough.

* * *

But it didn't do much to calm anyone down. At midnight there were seven people in that house and not one of them was asleep. Callie was far too nervous though she would never admit it. Mariana was guilty, Jude was worried for his sister, Jesus was disappointed in his twin, Brandon wondered how something like this could happen to the girl that risked her life for her brother and Stef and Lena were quietly discussing what they could possibly do to help.

"You think she's asleep?" Lena asked, hoping that the girl would get at least a few hours of shut eye.

"I doubt it." Stef said. "She's scared."

"So am I." Lena admitted. "I just wish there was something we could do, wrap her up and keep her safe for the rest of her life."

Stef sighed, she wanted nothing more but unfortunately it wasn't up to them. Callie was a ward of the state and they were the ones who got to decide what happened to her. Stef and Lena could try and fight for her but if the court decided otherwise then even they had no power.

That thought irritated Stef more than anything - how was it fair for a bunch of random people who had never even met Callie before decide what was in her best interest based on a file. What about the people who took the time and the trouble to get to know her, the ones who saw just how much of herself she gave up in order to look after her brother, the ones who knew how she'd been treated by the system and other foster families, the ones who looked into her eyes and saw everything she was trying to hide in order to seem brave. How come those people never got to decide her future.

"I'm going to check on her." Stef said, needed to offer whatever comfort she could to the teen.

She got up and moments later heard Lena get up as well. Stef turned around in question.

"I'll check on the other kids." Lena explained, needed to do something herself. "Jude must be pretty scared too."

Stef nodded and the two parted ways, one to Callie and the other to Jude.


	20. Chapter 20

"Miss. Jacob, in the last two weeks you have lied about a crime, evaded arrest, worked in an illegal environment, and violated your parole, is that correct?" The judge asked, glancing through Callie's file.

Callie took a deep, calming breath before answering. "Yes, your honor." She said with a lump in her throat. She hoped that being cooperative would earn her a few brownie points.

"And you have been to juvie once before." The judge confirmed.

And that was all it took. Callie knew for certain she was going back - why else would he even bring it up.

"Yes, our honor." Callie repeated, trying hard to hold back the tears. She wished like hell that Stef and Lena weren't around, she couldn't bare for them to see her break down.

"Miss. Jacob, do you know that it was against your parole to go anywhere without permission.?" The judge questioned.

"Yes, our honor." Callie said again, wondering if there was anything else she'd say though this entire process.

"And you know it's illegal for a minor to work in a bar, let alone one that it illegal?" The judge went on.

"Yes, our honor." Callie repeated again, losing interest in even answering.

"What about avoiding arrest, you know that's a crime too?" The judge pointed out.

"Yes, our honor." Callie said robotically.

"So you were aware that what you were doing was wrong." The judge stated for confirmation.

"Yes, our honor." Callie bit her lip to keep herself from snapping. She didn't see the point of any of this.

"Well Miss. Jacob, you seem to be quite the trouble maker." The judge said, glancing though her file again. "You've been to six foster homes in as many years and been sent away for various reasons, destroyed personal belongings, displayed violent and aggressive behavior and refused to cooperate with anyone that tried to help you." He listed.

Callie looked confused wondering who had ever tried to help her and when had she refused it.

The judge seemed to have read her mind. "It says here that you have been going to group therapy for two months now." The judge asked.

Callie nodded once, knowing exactly where this was going.

"And your therapist has said that you haven't actually participated even once." The judge stated.

Callie remained still this time, there was nothing she could say because it was true, she had never and would never participate. A bunch of kids talking about the crap they'd been though wasn't what she'd call helping and she wasn't about to add to it.

"Miss. Jacob, I'm afraid that you do not give me any sign that you are working towards solving this issues." The jude said. "You do not seem to respond to kindness and discipline seems to be the only way to control you." The judge turned towards the court in general. "Callie Jacob is to spend six months in the Chula Vista Juvenile Detention Facility after which she will be sent to a group home until her eighteenth birthday. Her brother, Jude Jacob, will continue to remain with his current foster family."

Callie was torn - she was terrified of spending six months in Juvie. One month had been torture, six would probably kill her. She now had no hope of any sort of future and she had nothing to live for either. But she was happy for Jude - he wasn't being taken from the Fosters and for that she was eternally grateful. She decided that she'd take what she got - it was her best chance of not ruining things for Jude.

But Stef had other ideas. Her blood was boiling and there was no way she was going to just sit back and watch them take Callie without a fight. This was why they'd insisted on coming, this was what they were here for - to show them all, most of all Callie, that she had people in her corner, ones that knew the real _her._

"Your honor that is an unfair sentence." Stef burst out through the noise of the room.

The entire room went silent and stared at Stef except for Callie who didn't dare to turn around.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" The judge asked in confusion.

"My name is Stephanie Marie Foster, officer with the SDPD." Stef introduced herself. "I am Callie's foster mother and this is my wife Lena Adams." Stef said glancing at Lena.

"What can I do for you Ms. Foster?" The judge asked, clearly annoyed with the interruption, he had several other things to do.

"Your honor, we have come to know Callie in the month she's lived with us and while she has made some mistakes we do not feel that is is an uncontrollable child or a trouble maker for that matter." Stef began.

"Miss. Jacob ran away from your home, Ms. Foster. She is a ward of the state and no longer your concern. There was no need for you to come all the way down here for this." The judge said.

Callie's head finally snapped up and she looked at Stef, a mixture of anger and gratefulness. She had desperately wanted to do with without anyone witnessing but Stef had said they were required to be here. The look on her face told Callie that she'd been lying and Callie was mad. But she was also grateful because, though she'd never admit it, it was nice to have someone in your corner.

"Callie is a good kid and someone has to speak for her." Stef said. She was talking to the judge but she was looking at Callie, explaining in her own way why she had insisted on being there. She wanted the girl to know that she wasn't about to give up without a fight.

"She has broken several conditions of her probation and this isn't her first offense." The judge pointed out.

"They were unfortunate circumstances." Stef argued.

"She did not have to run Ms. Foster." The judge said firmly. "Or lie for that matter."

"Who would have believe her?" Stef questioned. "You don't even believe me. Who was she to go to? This system is crap. The kids have no support, no voice, no say. They just get shuffled from one home to another, conditions be damned. Callie was sent to Juvie for trying to protect her little brother from an abusive foster father. That man was free to torture him for a month after the incident until I personally arrested him. Another foster brother took advantage of her and she was sent away on the grounds of being uncontrollable. You really expect her to have faith in anyone?"

"She still ran away and evaded arrest and assisted in the sale of drugs. Those are serous crimes, officer Foster. You should know that." The judge pointed out.

"Yes they are and we are certainly going to make her aware of it." Stef said glancing at Lena. "There will be consequences but Juvie isn't the answer sir. You sit up there behind that desk and dole out punishments without even knowing the person. All you see is what's written in a file but what about seeing the girl that's standing right in front of you? Your answer to everything is to lock them all up and throw away the key but that's just a copout." Stef said, breathing heavily from her rant. She was so angry that people with power just sat back dictated what had to be done but didn't do anything themselves.

"You are out of line, Ms. Foster." The judge said angrily. "I could take away your badge and hold you over night."

"That's exactly my point." Stef said, too wired to calm down. "Your answer to everything is to just throw away the key. How about trying to make a difference for a change. Be the one person that can actually change her view of the system. Be the person that can actually change her life."

The judge was taken aback but he did glance at Callie. He looked in her eyes and there he saw the girl that was frightened, the girl that was nervous, the girl that was hiding behind a wall of bravado, the girl that was staring at him, unconsciously begging him to give her that chance, the girl that Officer Stephanie Foster saw.

"Miss. Jacob, you are to continue your stay at your current foster home however you will attend group therapy, and you will participate." He stated clearly. "You will also serve three hundred hours of community service, the details can be worked out with your lawyer and you will be on house arrest for a period of ninety days. Should you break any of these rules you will return to juvie." He then glanced at Stef with an amused yet friendly smirk. "Ms. Foster, should Miss Jacob commit even one transgression I will lock you up and maybe even throw away that key."

The room erupted and Stef smiled in victory. "Yes your honor." She said and then turned to Callie, maintaining eye contact. Ultimately she was the one that made the difference, she was the one that showed Callie that there was some good in the system, she was the one that gave her hope.

"Go home." The judge said to both Stef and Callie before getting up and leaving the courtroom.

* * *

"CALLIE." Mariana squealed when Stef and Lena entered the house with the young girl in tow. "You're back."

But Callie was still too shocked to answer. Through the ride home she'd been silent, staring at Stef as though the woman had grown a second head. She couldn't believe what she'd done - the way she'd spoken to that judge and managed to convince him to change his mind.

"Yes she is so could you please go make room in your closet for her clothes." Stef answered for Callie, giving her a wink.

"On it." Mariana said as she turned to head upstairs. She paused a moment and hugged Callie tight before disapproving, two steps at a time.

"You guys hug way too much." Callie mumbled to herself but it was obviously not soft enough.

"Get used to it." Stef said giving Callie a side hug and kissing the side of her head. "You're stuck with us kid."

Callie finally smiled as she leaned into the hug and felt Lena join in on her other side. She could definitely get used to this and she was going to make sure she didn't do anything to get Stef locked up in a cell with no key.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So that's the end of that story. It turned out to be one of my most popular stories though when I started it was only supposed to be about five chapters of Stef/Callie bonding. With all your encouragement and support it turned into this. So thank you so much for the wonderful reviews - they really make my day.

Someone said that Stef and Lena were way too invested in Callie considering they didn't know her that well - they are good people and no matter the circumstances they worry about her. She's just a child after all and nothing ever deserves the life that runaways live and besides, she was in their care so they are responsible for her.

I tried to sort of follow the storyline - Callie admits about Liam, She goes in front of the judge and Stef fights for her, Mariana doesn't like her at first but once she's gone she realizes just how much she actually liked her and Jude grows closer to the Fosters while Callie is away. I don't know anything about the justice system so I just worked it for the drama.

Thanks again for reading and reviewing. I'm still working on **HISTORY** and all the requests I have lined up along with two other original stories so bare with me - I have limited time to write. My six month old keeps me on my toes all day long.

Love Junebug and Bugling.


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